Who Do I Think I Am, Anyway?
Tuesday, November 18th, 2008Hi, I’m Marguerite.
The Wong-Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale, used in pediatric pain management.
I’m the new blogger for HealthBeat–so I think I’d better introduce myself and explain to you why I believe I’m qualified to talk to you about pain and things that go creak in the night.
As it says in my profile, I have two young children. Very active, very curious, inclined to scrapes, bumps, knocks, spills, falls–all the normal stuff of youth.
At the other end of the relative spectrum, both my parents are in their mid-70s. My mother has Type 2 Diabetes, as well as a heck of a time with sciatica and a relationship with her chiropractor for over 25 years. She’s a tough old lady–beating cancer in her spare time–and would really rather take a DIY approach to her health than go to the doctor.
When I was in my early teens, her passion was yardwork, and she constantly got herself into tissue damage predicaments. She was always cutting herself or crushing various things with sharp implements. I still remember the time she almost sliced off all the skin over one knuckle with a long-handled tree-branch pruner. Anyone else would’ve gotten stitches, but she cleaned herself up in the bathroom sink, painted everything with Merthiolate (does anyone reading this remember Merthiolate?) applied A&D ointment, and wrapped it up with gauze and surgical tape. That’s pretty much been her approach to everything involving injuries that break the skin.
IMAK Hand Exerciser Stress Ball, For Hand Strength & Physical Therapy
In 1991, when I was in college, my dad had a small stroke. He recovered well enough to return to his career as a piano instructor at one of the local universities, and even overcame the lingering disabilities to give recitals. But this certainly introduced us to the world of physical therapy, exercises, and rehab equipment.
My husband played football before I met him, and has all kinds of lingering issues. His knees are, shall we say, not optimal. This past year he had to have multiple physical therapy sessions due to old rotator cuff insult. This, believe it or not, was not from football, but from his stint as an armored truck guard: He once caught an 800-lb bag of coin in his left hand (rather than have it hit the bank’s marble floor, bust open, and spill lord knows how much money). And that tore Lord knows what.
Both my husband and I are involved in an organization known as the Society for Creative Anachronism. It’s a not-for-profit organization that researches the Middle Ages and then tries to recreate them. We’re both invested in heavy weapons combat. A kind of martial arts, if you like. Except this martial art involves putting on armor and trying to beat the bewhillikers out of each other. We have rules, and safety experts, and medical people involved–our injury record is better, certainly than that of high school football.
But we who are involved in this sport do sustain a lot of injuries–Sprains. Strains. Bruises. Dislocations. Rotator cuff overuse. The odd broken bone here and there. We love our cold therapy and our heat therapy, and we really, really love our chiropractors.
So what I’m going to be doing is posting about adventures in injury, I guess you could call it. From where I’m sitting, I have a viewpoint of several segments of the population. You experienced folks who are determined not to let your golden years sit on you like lead. You parents who have kids bouncing all over the neighborhood, in addition to well-meaning spouses who try to overdo with painful consequences. Athletes and friends of athletes who get hurt and play hurt.
My hope is to inform you, amuse you, ask you questions, give you answers, and shed some light on helpful products that’ll help you wake up the next day with a little less pain. Goodness knows a little less pain is something we could all use.
Best wishes,
Marguerite
