Parents know best right? Well, not always. I haven't always made the best choices. None of us makes the right decision all the time. To think that we should live not questioning ourselves or regrets regarding our choices is extremely arrogant. The point is to try to make the best decisions.
There is a recent example that has just crawled right up my craw about this. I will warn you that I am about to be not so nice, so read at your own risk. I am not responsible if you get pissed off. This is about my opinions and views, if they are not in line with yours, fine. If they are in line with yours, fine. Regardless, this is my place to write, expound, philosophize, pose questions and thoughts.
What if you are constantly running to the doctor for everything and I mean EVERYTHING? What kind of example does that set? That will eventually turn a child into a hypochondriac, just like the parent. What if the parent takes a pill for everything? Doesn't that predispose a child to thinking that pills are the answer? Even worse, that pills are safe because they come from a doctor? What if a parent treats themselves for everything and doesn't treat their child for anything? Doesn't that tell the child that their health isn't as important as their parents? Needless to say there is a little someone I am worried about and all of these questions have crossed my mind.
It is pretty risky to take a pill for everything, yet so many seem to think that is the easy answer. I have anxiety - take a pill. I have headaches - take a pill. I have pain - take a pill. I have depression - take a pill. I can't sleep - take a pill. I'm fat - take a pill. How about dealing with it, rather than just masking it with drugs? Anxiety and depression, yep, I dealt with those once upon a time and still do on occasion. Those are things we talk ourselves into though, we can talk ourselves out of it if we chose to. Headaches, try not stressing out (see also anxiety/depression). While all of those nasty brain beaters aren't brought on solely by stress, the majority are. Pain? Let's just say I deal with this one every single day. Visceral pain is a mean bitch. I don't take medication anymore for any of it outside of the rare tylenol. I am not claiming to be tougher than anyone else, I have just learned how detrimental those can be. Can't sleep? Once again, see anxiety/depression and headaches. Try getting off of all the other chemicals and de-stressing. Fat? So what? If you are unhappy about it then get off you tush and do something about it. Stop piling in the food every time you 'can't deal'. The simple and short-term solution is too often a pill and not often enough a real and lasting solution to the problem.
Let me just give you a little insight as to why I feel so strongly about this. At age 29 I had been through medical hell. I survived cancer once, had two traumatic miscarriages, beaten and lived with a damning disease called pancreatitis, survived a heart attack from an extreme allergic reaction to preservatives in the TPN (feeding solution) they put in through the groshon (feeding tube and port ran directly through my heart), had my gallbladder burst inside of me (that has left me extremely disfigured), had perforated ulcers that were bleeding out. I had beaten all of that. Damn near miraculous. I had started having extreme hemorrhagia again. I knew something was desperately wrong when I was passing blood clots the size of bars of soap (pretty terrifying). It happened again, cancer. I was devastated. My uterus, ovaries and cervix were riddled with it. The Doxil from the last time left me feeling like I had nothing in me. There was no way I was going down that road again, not only that, the doctors told me there was no way it could be treated. It all had to be removed and I didn't have a choice. Then came the worse news...pre-op. I had been on prescriptions for everything for almost 10 years, because that is what the doctors told me was best. Turns out, it had started to kill me. My liver function was at 59. Which was well beyond the high normal that the surgeon felt comfortable operating in. I was told that the surgery was necessary, but given my elevated liver levels it was extremely risky. My choice - death or death. *sigh* *big sigh* *bigger sigh* My surgeon agreed to do the surgery and make me womanhood free or complete hysterectomy, however you want to see it. (still one of my biggest regrets, even though I know there was no other option) Check one more off the list that I have survived.
That alone should have been enough to shake me in my shoes and make me see how dangerous prescriptions are. I had given up in a way because my personal life was a mess. It was easy to take the opiates, muscle relaxers, anti-inflammatories and statin reducers. My children had come to know a mom that was always taking something, but still functioning. That scared me. I was a functional addict. Even if it was prescribed to me, my body had become accustomed to them. Then came the second blow...the man I love. We came back into each other's lives at a time when his world was about to be shaken to the core. His Old Man got lymphoma. It was a slim chance of possibility from the prescriptions he was on from another disease. It is damned unfortunate that the odds weren't in his favor. Today is his birthday and has made me think even more about how firmly I stand on this topic. A couple of years ago about this time, I made the conscious decision that I would never put my children or him in the position of losing someone that way. Cold turkey...dear goddess it was painful and difficult. One battle I fought fiercely and happened to win. It was weeks of struggles. In the end, it has all been well worth it.
Children view us as an example who and what to grow up as. They emulate what they see. While children don't know the intricate details of every part of our adult lives, they still know that they are affected. Children are receptive and bright, often beyond what we give them credit for. They don't need us talking to them like they are adults, because they aren't. They simply don't grasp and understand on that level. They do understand that it affects them, so providing them with information in a way they can process is of utmost importance. I, for one, don't want my children to see me popping a pill for everything that ails me. I damn sure don't want them thinking that is the answer for them either. I would rather tell them I hurt like hell everyday and that I struggle with who I am at times, but I REFUSE to pop a pill and be a quitter.
The answer isn't mother's little helper. The answer is dealing with all that I can instead of a prescription band-aid. Sure, there are times when it is okay to treat yourself. I am sick and tired of seeing parents run to the medicine cabinet for all their troubles. Even worse are these drugged up nitwits who wander around in a haze, cry babying about their problems but won't give their child medical treatment because they are too wrapped up in their own bullshit.
Get off the drama and get off the drugs. Life is pretty amazing if you chose to live it, rather than just existing in it.
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