What Really Matters, According to Me

My teenage daughters and I took a ‘break from the fake’ not long ago and fasted (so to speak), from social media for a week. At the end of the week, we all went back to normal, with a better perspective, we agreed. Another week or so passed, and my fourteen-year-old said she realized her use of social media was making her feel bad. She felt much better during the week of the break, so decided to quit social media completely. I’m impressed with her maturity and wisdom, and told her so. It’s well-documented and unrefuted that social media use (and the screen time that comes with), is linked to numerous negative health outcomes, including headaches, insomnia, obesity and even diabetes and heart disease (from sitting around and sometimes even snacking while on the screen). Just as concerning, however, are mental health issues associated particularly with social media use, such as anxiety, depression, antisocial tendencies, feelings of isolation, and social media addiction (for more inform...

I appreciate the outpouring of concern over my pain-in-the-neck. The MRI results are in and is seems there are some small missing pieces of bone, some missing cartilage, a couple of bones sitting crooked and some discs in an unhealthy condition. The resulting chronic headache, neck and shoulder pain, and numbness in my arm and hand are limiting my mobility and affecting my life. I plan to meet with a neurosurgeon, hopefully sometime sooner rather than later. I’m not getting any younger, after all. Like all of us, I’m getting older. We all know what that means. Aging can and does bring countless changes. Chronic conditions related to aging are sometimes inevitable. According to the National Council on Aging, the top five chronic conditions affecting older people, beginning with the most prevalent, are: high blood pressure (almost 2/3 of the 65+ population), high cholesterol (almost ½), arthritis (about 1/3), heart disease (about 1/3), and diabetes (more than ¼). There are other conditio...

I don’t very often, but I fainted the other day. I surprised myself. I try not to swoon, as a rule. The circumstances were uncommon, though, and that’s usually how it is when something like that takes us by surprise. I had been sitting up, awake, all night, with my mother-in-law, as she was passing beyond the veil that separates this world from the next. My good husband and I were both physically and emotionally exhausted. We stepped out for a brief respite, while the hospice workers tended to cleaning and preparing Mrs. Blackburn for final farewells. Upon reentering the room, something about the moment was overwhelming and I stumbled backward, thankful (after the fact), that a chair had been directly behind me. That physical experience eclipsed my emotions, briefly. Likely, about 1/3 of you know what I mean because you’ve experienced it, too. NMS (neurally mediated syncope), neurocardiogenic syncope, and vasovagal syncope are all terms for what we call fainting. This, generally benig...