I've been seeing and reading a lot of misinformation lately on two medical conditions that are near and dear to me. These conditions are Diabetes and Depression. Since I have been diagnosed with both of these a decade or longer ago I have had plenty of time to educate myself on how to manage them and so I find some of the commonly heard beliefs on these conditions irritating and in some cases even insulting.
Let's look at Diabetes first. Specifically Type 2 or "adult onset" Diabetes. Just this past week on The Biggest Loser TV show it was stated multiple times that this disease is "100% preventable", hinting that Diabetics are just plain lazy. I've been told by supposedly well meaning people that I had this disease because I was too fat and/ or had eaten too much sugar. No, no and no!
Type 2 Diabetes is a serious medical condition in which the body does not process and use insulin correctly. This is often called "insulin resistance". Since the insulin is not utilized properly the body is not able to use glucose (sugar) properly, so the level of sugar in the bloodstream is too high. That imbalanced blood chemistry can affect many different organs in the body as well as the blood vessels themselves.
While it IS true that a significant percentage of people diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes are overweight, many people of normal weight have this disease as well. Genetics plays a major factor as well as this condition does tend to run in families. It is also true that physical activity is very important for people with Type 2 Diabetes because physical activity forces your body to use more glucose and therefore forces more of it out of the bloodstream. However, physical activity is important for everyone!
I will admit I was overweight when I was diagnosed. But I've never had a sweet tooth or was allowed too many sugary snacks as a child, nor is there any guarantee that I would not have developed this condition at a better weight. My father also has Diabetes and he was a farmer for most us his life and now has a very physically demanding manufacturing job. I take serious offence at anyone who would call him lazy.
Now let's look at Depression. I cannot count the number of times I've been told to "just snap out of it" or "it's all in your head" or "get out of the situation that's depressing you". My personal favorite has to be "You must enjoy feeling that way or you'd stop it". NO!!!!!!
Clinical Depression is a serious medical condition in which the symptoms are ongoing and last for over a month. These symptoms can vary widely, but usually include some or most of the following: depressed mood lasting all day, lack of enjoyment in previously enjoyable activities, sleep issues, fatigue, feelings of worthlessness, recurring thoughts of death/ suicide, muscle aches, loss of concentration and slowed thinking or movement. People with this condition have lower than normal levels of one or more of the chemicals that allow our brains to function (serotonin, dopamine and norepinephrine).
Depression is treated with drugs, therapy, or both. Anti-depressants work by inhibiting the brain's ability to break down those chemicals, keeping the levels higher. Since the lowered levels of brain chemicals affect how your internal dialog goes therapy helps training yourself to re-train your internal dialog. Depression can also run in families.
I have struggled with Depression most of my life and I assure you I don't enjoy it one bit. I doubt anyone else on my mother's side of the family who also has this condition enjoys it either. I went through 3 years of therapy which was a huge help and will probably be on Paxil the rest of my life as well. If I needed to take drug therapy for a thyroid problem no one would tell me to "snap out of it" or somehow THINK my way healthy and it's just as ridiculous to suggest I could manage my Depression that way.
So please, think before you say or post any comments about other people's medical conditions. Educate yourself before you judge.
Thank you.
Today I'm asking for help. Specifically I'm asking for help from my friends who are deeply religious. Most of you will be Christians, but I'm quoting from the Old Testament, a book also revered by Jews and Muslims, so please feel free to comment if you are of either of those beliefs as well. Yes, I know I'm leaving some of you on the curb on this one. Sorry.
I'vee said it before and I'll say it again- I am in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage. For me it's not a religious issue at all- it's about everyone having equal rights under the law which is supposed to be what the USA is all about. However, I know this IS a religious issue for many others- including people I care deeply about- and that's why I'm asking these questions today.
Leviticus 18 verse 22 says "Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable". This verse is commonly quoted by people who are against legalizing same-sex marriage. But here s where I struggle with that- there are a lot of other things in Leviticus- even Leviticus 18!- that no ones quotes or lives by today. Here are just a few examples:
Lev 18 verse 19: Do not approach a woman to have sexual relations during the uncleanness of her monthly period.
Lev 19 verse 19: Do not mate different kinds of animals Do not plant your field with two kinds of seed. Do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material.
Lev 17 verse 13: Anyone among you who hunts any animal or bird that may be eaten must drain out the blood and cover it with earth.
Here are a couple from Deuteronomy as well:
Det 22, verses 28- 29: If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her and they are discovered, he shall pay her father fifty shekels of silver. He must marry the young woman, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as long as he lives.
Det 22, verses 23-24: If a man happens to meet in a town a virgin pledged to be married and he sleeps with her, you shall take both of them to the gate of that town and stone them to death—the young woman because she was in a town and did not scream for help, and the man because he violated another man’s wife.
I don't think anyone with even half a brain thinks forcing a rapist to marry his victim is a good idea. I've never seen anyone protesting t shirts that are a 50-50 blend of cotton and polyester. I've never heard a sermon condemning couples choosing to make love during "that time of the month". But this is exactly where it gets me- if we have decided as religious law that Leviticus 18 verse 19 doesn't apply to us in the year 2013, then why does Leviticus 18 verse 22?
This is a serious question that has been bothering me for quite a while now and I am hoping and praying for serious answers.
Thank you.
All Bible verses are quoted from the NIV translation of the Holy Bible.
Tis the season to be thankful! Anyone able to read this had SO much to be thankful for. Instead of posting this day by day I decided to do it all in one fell swoop.
This is in no means all the blessings I have in my life, but just a fun list that got me thinking and hopefully gets you thinking about all the good around you as well.
A is for Ava. My 18 month old niece is a joy to so many people ranging from her parents and grandparents, to my aunt and uncle who are transitioning into empty nesters, to her brother who wanted a sibling for years to even me, the well documented child phobe.
B is for Bon Jovi. No explanation required :-)
C is for Cell Phones. If they had never been invented I never would have met my husband!
D is for Dad. I admire my dad so much. He's a man of integrity, honor and quiet strength. So much of who I am is because of him.
E is for Employment. We all know someone who is struggling to find work. I am thankful that I am gainfully employed at a growing, stable company that actually cares about its employees as human beings.
F is for felines. There is nothing better than snuggling up with a purring kitty. It's contentment at its best. I've had pet indoor cats for 18 years now and don't plan to ever be without one or two furballs sharing my home.
G is for Grandparents. I am incredibly lucky to say that I got to know and have memories all 4 of my grandparents and 3 of my great grandparents. There's nothing quite like going to Grandma's house!
H is for Home. I was blessed to grow up on a family farm with two parents who still have a great marriage. I also had most of my extended family less than 20 miles from me. I have wonderful memories of Christmases with both sets of grandparents and all my aunts and uncles gathered around one tree full of presents singing Christmas carols together. I'm now blessed to live in the home my husband grew up in and has loved all his life.
I is for Internet. The Internet has allowed me to reconnect with old friends and make amazing new ones. I'd never be able to say I have friends on multiple continents without it.
J is for Julie. My cousin/ goddaughter was an unexpected but very welcome addition to our family and I have loved watching her grow up into the intelligent, talented young woman she is today.
K is for Kittens. If looking at and and cuddling with kittens doesn't make your heart melt then you don't have one.
L is for Lord. I am a Christian and I truly believe everything happens for a reason even though many times I don't know what that reason could be. I trust that the Lord has things under control. Without that trust I would have been in a padded cell years ago.
M is Music. I took piano lessons for 10 years and thought I hated them- looking back I am so glad my parents never let me quit! I also played clarinet through college and still play with 2 local concert bands which I enjoy so much. Also, several years ago my husband got me a satellite radio for Christmas which I use every day and love and of course there's that Bon Jovi obsession I have as well!
N is for nephew. The birth of my nephew Luke 8 years ago made 3 people first time grandparents and me a first time aunt. And even though he has a little sister now he's still a pretty big deal.
O is for Ozone. How there can be any ozone layer left after all the Aqua Net hairspray my friends and I used during the 80's is truly a miracle.
P is for Pat. Pat is my husband, my best friend, my rock and my biggest cheerleader. We had a strange and twisted journey to where we are now, but I think that just made our relationship that much stronger when we did finally come together.
Q is for Quinn. Quinn is my husband's middle name. I thought he was kidding first time he told me that, turns out he wasn't! His sense of humor is another one of the many many things I love about Pat.
R is for Razors. Without these handy tools I would look like Chewbacca- at least from the waist down!
S is for school. Specifically college for me. I spent two years at a small Lutheran college and two plus years at one of the largest colleges in the US. Both experiences were eye opening, growing times for me- exactly what college is supposed to be. Many of my dearest friends today are ones I met during these years.
T is for Traditions. The older I get the most I appreciate some traditions I thought were silly when I was younger. They tie families and communities together. They are priceless.
U is for United States of America. We certainly have our problems, but I cannot imagine living anywhere else. The USA might be a dysfunctional family, but it's my dysfunctional family and I love it.
V is for Veterans. The USA is who we are because of all of the brave men women who have served in the armed forces over the years. My dad served in Vietnam, one of his cousins was in Desert Storm, both my grandfathers were in WWII. I have several former coworkers who served in the Egypt and Afghanistan. Thankfully, they all returned safe and sound. Many other families aren't as lucky. My neighbors up the street lost their son as a result of a head injury sustained in Iraq. Our former next door neighbors lost a son in Vietnam. All citizens should thank Veterans more often!
W is for water. Some of my best vacation memories take place on or near lakes and rivers. Watching the boats at Canal Park on Lake Superior, the geysers and other oddities in Yellowstone, the gorge and swinging bridge at Jay Cooke, the falls at Minneopa- these are just a few of my favorite aquatic things.
X is for Ex-husband. (Yes I know that doesn't really start with an X, but come on!) An odd thing to be thankful for I know, but we both learned a lot and grew as people during our marriage and maintain a strong friendship to this day. I am convinced that without the mistakes I made and learned from during that relationship I wouldn't be nearly as successful in my current marriage as I am.
Y is for You. Yes you, the person actually reading this :-) Thanks for spending a moment inside my world!
Z is for Zigzag. Just because it's fun to say. Go ahead- try it!
Ugh. It's that time of year again- the United Way fund raising season. For only $2 a week out of my paycheck I can do so many amazing things. Um no, I'll pass.
I'm not anti-charity. My current employer holds annual fundraisers for several other organizations each year- including events for our local food bank and animal shelter- that I happily participate in. I give to my church. I put money in as many Salvation Army red kettles as I can. I buy cookies, popcorn, pizzas, etc. from kids raising money for Cub Scouts, choir trips, baseball uniforms or any any number of other things kids raise money for these days. But I have not ever nor will I ever give money to the United Way.
Why such hostility towards the United Way? I have a long list of reasons, but I'll stick to the top three.
#1 I don't doubt most of the people who work for United Way are truly good hearted individuals who want to help others. But they do have a large payroll and have been criticized many times for being too "top heavy", with their administration costs eat up a significant percentage of the donations they receive. There have also been many reports over the years of monies be embezzled or simply stolen by United Way workers and/ or volunteers. I'm not naive enough to think no other charity has problems, but the United Way seems to have had more than their fair share.
#2 The United Way is relentless. Charitable giving should be from the heart and voluntary. Yet every single fund raising kick off I've attended for the United Way at four completely different employers has been so pressure-filled it's completely turned me off. At one company I was almost made to feel that my job was on the line! This cannot be a coincidence, especially when none those same employers used any of the same tactics for any of the other charities they were involved with. Clearly the United Way is encouraging this sort of presentation.
#3 The United Way loves to give awards. Lots of big, shiny trophies are awarded every year. And businesses love to display them in their lobby or other public area so everyone else can see how charitable they are. Not only do I find this really tacky, but trophies aren't cheap. How many people thought they were helping battered women or hungry kids but really just helped pay for someone else's vanity piece?
So, thanks but no thanks. I'll sit this one out.
I am not a moron. I am not clueless about the issues facing our country. But, I am an undecided voter.
How is that possible? It's pretty simple actually- my personal beliefs don't fall nicely into either side of the aisle. And I bet there are a lot of people like me who are just too scared of the ridicule to admit they don't fit into a pre-designed box either. SO, for all of them, I'm speaking up and putting myself out there on a couple of today's hot button topics and I hope we can all agree to disagree when necessary.
I am in favor of both legalizing same sex marriage and of requiring proof of ID to vote. And I'm going to explain why.
I don't believe legalizing same sex marriage has anything to do with anyone's religious beliefs. It's about giving all people equal rights. If you don't want to be in a same sex relationship, don't. But I don't want anyone telling me who I can marry nor do I think I am so moral or wise that I should be able to dictate anyone else's love life either.
I live in Iowa, where same sex marriage has been legal for a couple years now. After about the first month it's been no big deal. The sun has continued to rise in the East every morning. No one has forced a religious leader to officiate at a wedding they didn't want to. No one has been asking us to legalizing polygamy or bestiality. And I don't know of anyone in a hetero marriage who feels their own union has been lessened because their lesbian neighbors got hitched. Nor should they.
Moving on to ID to vote. I honestly thought this was already a law. In the recent past I have personally used or witnessed someone using their photo ID to: check into a hotel, gain entrance to a casino, write a check, cash a check, pick up tickets at a will call window, pick up a narcotic prescription, buy alcohol, buy cigarettes, use a debit card, apply for nursing home assistance, apply for social security,donate plasma, and apply for a store credit card.
Most people in the USA drive cars or have driven at some point in their lives. If you don't live in a large metro area it's almost impossible to function without a car. A driver's license is required to drive a car in all 50 states. Not to mention that ALL United States employers are required to verify proof of work eligibility and one of the items they require for that is- you guessed it- a photo ID.
I simply do not believe there are these hordes of people in this country who have never driven, held a job, gone to a bar, or cashed a check but yet earn to cast a vote. I just don't.
There are many other reasons why I'm torn on who to vote for for President, but I think I'll stop here while I still have few friends left.
I personally know of 4 weddings and 2 marriage proposals that took place last Saturday. While I'm not sure if September is the new June I do know that all of these marital happenings around me have me thinking about my favorite blog topic again- marriage. And while I generally shy away from giving marital advice there are a couple things I've learned from my own marriages and those of people around me that I do want to share. Certainly those readers yet to be married or newlyweds are the audience I'm most targeting here, but everyone wants to have a solid, happy marriage and what better why to improve your own than seeing what works for others?
So, here are my Top 3 Tips for a Happy Marriage
13 Have separate checking accounts. OR, have a joint account for bills where each partner contributes a set amount, and whatever is left over is yours to do with as you please. Or have some other system that allows each person to have some agreed upon amount of money they can spend exactly as they see fit without having to get any input from their spouse. This is generally the only advise I actually share at weddings or engagement parties because I am so adamant about its importance to household happiness.
#2 Going to bed angry is OK. In fact, sometimes it's the smartest thing you can do. It's amazing how much clearer things appear after you sleep on them and both had time to cool off. And as a wise man once advised me "You never have to apologize for something terrible you didn't say."
#3 It's OK to "divide and conquer". Yes, you want your significant other to be with you- why else would you have gotten married in the first place? But if you have multiple invitations for the same date there is nothing wrong with occasionally deciding to have each person going to their first choice event and then meeting up back at home afterwards. Changes are you will each enjoy yourselves more than if you'd drug your honey somewhere they really didn't want to go anyway. You are partners, not Siamese twins.
What are your tips for a happy, lasting marriage? I'd love to hear them!
Now that NFL training camps are wrapping up and the start of the new season is right around the corner more people are talking about Tim Tebow again and wondering what kind of role me might play in the Jet's offense this year. I love NFL football and I love debating about it with anyone and everyone, and what better NFL related topic to generate debate than Tim Tebow?
It's likely the Jets will use Tebow in a few special packages at the beginning of the season, but if the team starts to struggle there will be an angry mob calling for Tebow to start. They might even buy billboards like fans did last year in Denver. But they are wrong, and not just because they are Jets fans (sorry, couldn't resist- I'm a Dolphins fan!). There- I said it. I don't think Tebow is a good quarterback.
Good- you are still reading this. I can explain my position.
First of all, there is little doubt that Tim Tebow is a fine human being. By all accounts he is genuinely gracious and humble. He gets along well with his teammates. He looks good with his shirt off. His squeaky clean image is a refreshing change from all of the arrests and other legal problems that seem to be so common among professional athletes and makes him a great role model for kids. But being a nice guy doesn't make someone a good QB.
Second, there is little doubt that Tim Tebow is a devout Christian. This fact has earned him and lost him many fans. But being a Christian doesn't make someone a good QB.
Finally, there is little doubt that Tim Tebow is a gifted athlete. He has an amazing skillset most people can only dream of. However, I defy anyone to find another situation in the modern NFL where a QB was completing only a couple passes a quarter and fans weren't calling for his and his coach's heads on a spike. Tebow would make a great wide receiver or special teams player. There are plenty of successful NFL players in both those roles who played QB in high school, and a few even played some QB in college, so this isn't a foreign concept in the least.
I welcome debate- bring it on!
