July 16, 2007 at 5:52 pm (BET)
BET is still planning to air “Hot Ghetto Mess” inspite of the wave of opposition that is currently underway in the blogosphere. This effort to combat BET is largely being fought by a a site What About Our Daughters. Although the sister over at the blog is dedicated to informing us about what is going on – she can’t do it alone.
One way we can help to fight BET is to support Cable Choice. It basically would let us choose and pay for only the channels we would like to see – thereby leaving BET in the dust which would effectively shut them down. Please contact your US Representative and US Senator , using BET’s “Hot Ghetto Mess” as an example for why you support Cable Choice.
More information on Cable Choice.
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July 16, 2007 at 5:39 pm (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 16, 2007 at 3:45 pm (Thyroid Disorder)
I began taking Cytomel a few days ago to try and get my thyroid hormones corrected. I’m currently taking a very small dosage twice a day with the only apparent side effect being a dull headache. Will update later.
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July 14, 2007 at 4:55 am (African American, African American Images, BET, Parenting, Teenagers)
BET is preparing to air what can only be described as a minstrel show depicting African-Americans in the poorest possible way. Apparently they are competing with VH1 to try and one-up the Flavor of Love programs. According to the blogoshere, BET was actively soliciting images and information of most unbecoming nature to depict on this show – some of which show disturbing images of children.
Home Depot and State Farm Insurance beat a hasty retreat from “Hot Ghetto Mess” following a growing din of complaints, mostly on the Internet, that the show – a collection of home videos and images sent in by viewers – depicts African Americans in the worst light possible.
The show evolved from an Internet site of the same name, which features photos of African Americans in various “ghetto” styles, including hair, clothing and jewelry.
At least one gallery of photos on the site shows toddlers and infants photographed holding bottles of beer or with cigars in their mouths. – New York Post
Hopefully BET will come to it’s senses and pull the plug on this nonsense.
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July 13, 2007 at 5:49 pm (Thyroid Disorder)
I just received my blood labs and noticed that the lab company that performed the testing has not updated the normal range stated for TSH levels. They are still using old levels defined at 0.350 – 5.500 and my TSH level is 4.079 which according to the lab result places my levels in normal range. The problem is that in November of 2002 the American Association of Endocrinologists issued a press release publishing new clinical guidelines & treatment standards for thyroid disorder, see below:
Until November 2002, doctors had relied on a normal TSH level ranging from 0.5 to 5.0 to diagnose and treat patients with a thyroid disorder who tested outside the boundaries of that range5 . Now AACE encourages doctors to consider treatment for patients who test outside the boundaries of a narrower margin based on a target TSH level of 0.3 to 3.04. AACE believes the new range will result in proper diagnosis for millions of Americans who suffer from a mild thyroid disorder, but have gone untreated until now.
Fortunately, I am an internet junkie and try to keep up with all of the latest research on thyroid disorder as I no longer feel I can completely rely upon doctors or labs so I review my own lab work. I realize that I am a fortunate one as I doubt a majority of Americans especially those that are disadvantaged, elderly or sick spend time on the internet researching these things. As much as we pay for health care in this country, I expect much more.
All of this to say, review your own lab work and if any of your levels are marginal, take some time to research – it could play a major difference in your quality of life especially when dealing with your thyroid.
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July 13, 2007 at 9:17 am (Mental Health, Parenting)
Chicago Tribune:
In a symbolic move to erase the controversial “n-word” from the English vocabulary, the NAACP held a mock funeral in Detroit on Monday, complete with a horse-drawn carriage and a pine box coffin that will be buried in a city cemetery and marked with a headstone.
“Today, we’re not just burying the n-word, we are taking it out of our spirit, we are taking it out of our minds,” Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick said before hundreds of cheering supporters. “To bury the n-word, we gotta bury the pimps and the hos and the hustlers. Let’s bury all the nonsense that comes with this.”
Although I applaud the efforts and believe all of us (black & white) need to refrain from using this word “N” word – the NAACP is not going to effect that change. Quite frankly we have bigger fish to fry in this country concerning the state of African-Americans. Many do not have health care, jobs, affordable housing, etc. We need to ignore the word and remember what our elders taught us: “It’s not what you’re called it’s what you answer to”.
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July 13, 2007 at 7:37 am (African American, African American Images)
What were they thinking? This is a photo-shoot of Mo’nique and contestants for the upcoming F.A.T. Chance competition. It’s intended to be artful, however, it looks like 6 naked overweight women with paint on their bodies, holding their “twins” while posing for a camera. I applaud them for being proud thick sisters…but this crosses the line. In all honesty Mo’nique looks tasteful, the others look awful.
Before you start going off on me – realize that I’m a big girl myself and I have always admired Mo’nique for promoting the beauty of us big sisters, however, we all must realize that different body shapes require different things.
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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.
Leave a Comment
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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