Archive for the ‘ Health ’ Category

MotoAdventureGal Riding for a Cause

A few months ago I met Alisa (MotoAdventureGal) when her and a friend stayed with me as they were traveling from Connecticut to North Carolina where they would start their ride across the United States on the Trans America Trail. Alisa is an inspiration. She quit her day job to live outside the box and get out of the “comfort zone”. Now she gets paid to do what she truly loves, ride motorcycles and write about her experiences.

Alisa is now on her way through Mexico as she heads for South America. She is currently riding for cancer awareness and raising money to try to beat this dreadful disease that strikes so many people we may know. I’d like to ask my readers to follow Alisa on her site as she updates us on her travels. And if you can, please donate to this cause. Every dollar goes straight to research as she is paying for her own travel expenses.

2009
12/10
CATEGORY
Health
Motorcycles
Travel
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Diagnosis

Today I had my final follow-up visit with my doctor to discuss my injuries from my motorcycle accident and to see my cholesterol results from my most recent blood test. My cholesterol looks fine. That’s the extent of the good news. Now for the bad news. Well, my ribs are fine. Nothing broken or fractured, just bruised. BUT, my doctor noticed that I have a 4cm spot on my left lung. She said it’s probably nothing to worry about because it’s only 4cm, but I will need an additional cat scan within the next 6-12 months to make sure it does not grow. If it grows, it could be cancerous. That was totally NOT what I was expecting to hear today! I don’t smoke, but I do have asthma. So anything involved with breathing or my lungs I take very seriously.

On top of this, my uncle was buried today. Going to his viewing last night was emotional enough for me. Looking mortality straight in the eye has had my mind racing lately. I’ll admit, I’m scared.

On the other extreme, my cousin Jeremy is getting married at the Outer Banks this weekend. Some of the family is already down there and so could not attend the funeral today. His father was here for the funeral today and will fly down on Thursday for his son’s wedding.

There’s just too much going on lately that I find myself in a rut. Whether people notice it or not, I’m not sure. I like to be happy but I find I’m probably hiding a lot of emotions and thoughts and not letting them out. I don’t think I know how to vent these feelings.

2009
09/16
CATEGORY
Health
Writings
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Allergies for Harrisburg, Pennsylvania

If you suffer from seasonal allergies like me and you live in or around Harrisburg, Pennsylvania you have probably noticed allergy symptoms recently. In my case I have noticed the itchy eyes, itchy throat, and stuffy nose. I have been using my emergency inhaler for my asthma quite often too since I have been keeping my windows open to enjoy the Spring breeze. Unfortunately this also lets all of that pollen blow through my house too.

Here’s a list of the plants which are causing your allergy symptoms in the Harrisburg area. Today’s pollen forecast shows a pollen count of 9.7 which is high. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania actually took the 44 spot in Spring allergy capitals of the United States this year following cities such as Philadelphia, PA (11), Allentown, PA (19), Pittsburgh, PA (26), and Scranton, PA (28).

Pennsylvania is not a good state to live in for those who suffer from seasonal allergies.

2009
05/11
CATEGORY
Harrisburg
Health
Writings
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Living on Food Stamps

This will be interesting to follow. Sean Caleb of CNN is finding out what it is like to live on food stamps for one month. Since he doesn’t qualify to use this program, he found that the most a single person can qualify for is $176 per month. That’s about $6.28 per day. Can you live on $6.28 per day?

Some statistics from his report already:

  • 31 million Americans rely on the food stamp program
  • In Louisiana 1 out of 6 people uses food stamps
  • Food stamps are actually now called Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
2009
02/03
CATEGORY
Food
Government & Politics
Health
Writings
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Premier Eye Care Results

My consultation with Premier Eye Care today went as expected. They performed the usual tests and dilated my pupils and took some cool photos of the topography of my eye. The results show that I am a candidate for LASIK or PRK. 

I was told that which ever I chose, I would probably need reading glasses in my 40′s. Unless I chose to only have one eye corrected for myopia. Then I could use one eye for focusing close and the other for focusing far away. They recommended trying to wear just one contact for a few days to see how it feels.

Next comes the price. Premier seems to be a lot more expensive than I had anticipated. Here’s the prices I was quoted.

Intralase LASIK
iLASIK with Intralase FS, Visx Star4 and Advanced CustomVue: $2,495 per eye 

PRK
Epi-LASIK and AST (Advanced Surface Treatment): $2,295 per eye

Enhancements: $190 

That is a lot more than what I was looking at spending. But now I can try a few other places and see what works best. I’m not necessarily looking for the lowest price. But I do want to see what my options are.

2009
01/23
CATEGORY
Health
Writings
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