Tag: ‘health’
March 27, 2013 at 7:29 am
Photo by Avard Woolaver / by NC-ND 2.0 CC
I recommend that you never get sick if 1) you are a freelancer or 2) single. It sucks. And blows. And does all sorts of things you don’t want to know the details of, but I’m going to tell you anyway.
Earlier this month I spent an entire week being sick. It’s been awhile since I’ve had a full-blown, lie-on-the-couch-all-day, illness and I’d forgotten how miserable it can be. Friday night my throat was a little sore when I swallowed, then I went online and learned that a few of the friends I’d recently visited in Wisconsin were ill too, so we were basically tracking disease vectors on Facebook. (Does the CDC do that? I bet they do.) I was soooooo close to getting through the winter without getting ill, but not even regular hand washing could save me at this point.
Twenty-four hours later I was sleeping with my mouth open because my nose was so stuffy, though I don’t know if it’s technically sleep when you keep [...]
October 3, 2012 at 7:58 am
I got an email from a reader recently who asked a question I wasn’t entirely sure how to answer, so I decided to punt it to you guys instead. Of course, I might be stretching the meaning of the word “recently” when I refer to an email I received over two months ago. Sorry about that, dear reader! I got busy or lazy or both if that’s even possible. Here’s what she wrote:
A brief personal history: I’m typically in the mid-range of the “overweight” section of the BMI scale, I exercise regularly and eat fairly healthy, just a little too much of everything. But, my question concerns my role as a nurse practitioner in a college health setting. I occasionally see students who are at an unhealthy weight and I’m never quite sure how to approach a discussion. I tend to think most of us know if we need to lose weight, we just don’t always do what we need to do. I realize different people require different approaches, but I’m wondering what, if any, [...]
October 2, 2012 at 7:37 am
Not my actual knee. Photo by Mike Davies / by NC-ND 2.0 CC
Last month I had two projects go so spectacularly, horribly wrong at the same that I had to run. Literally run, not run away from the projects, though that would have been lovely. Too bad I have a sense of professional responsibility and a need to pay my rent.
Exercising because I’m stressed out is a new thing for me. Usually I just eat a package of Oreos because I cling to the belief that cookies can fix everything, just like duct tape. However, my body felt so physically tense that even the gross output of the Nabisco factory wouldn’t have helped me, so I went for a walk instead. After a few minutes I realized walking wasn’t enough, so I burst into a run and I ran and ran and ran. While this did not solve my work problems, I did feel like I could go back to work without having an aneurysm.
Although I’d been walking fairly regularly, I’d been avoiding running [...]
June 7, 2012 at 2:32 pm
Back in March 2000 I saw Douglas Adams and Ray Bradbury speak at Clowes Hall in Indianapolis. Admittedly, I made the three hour drive from college to see Douglas Adams, author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series, but Ray Bradbury was a nice bonus. Douglas Adams was as lively and funny as you’d expect him to be from his writing. He strode purposely across the stage while he read from his books and didn’t sit down once during his presentation.
Then Ray Bradbury came out. He was an elderly, overweight man who was rolled out in a wheel chair. I also think he had an oxygen tank, but my memory might have embroidered that detail on later because I perceived him to be in such poor health. He’d recently had a stroke and was clearly still recovering. Despite all that, he too gave a fascinating presentation about his life and writing experiences. It was a great night and I was very happy I’d managed to make it the event
However, if you’d have [...]
