Dreamwalker

I dislike hospitals. I am not alone in this, I know, but I feel so stressed every time I enter a hospital. Never mind that the hospital is one of the best in the country - there is something about this kind of environment that makes every single nerve ending in my body scream out, as if in pain. It does not help that you actually see people suffering, making you feel as if you were the one in pain as well. And I am not exaggerating. I really do feel physically sick every time I visit a hospital.

This past week, I have been in and out Makati Med to see my sister who had laparascopic surgery for her gall bladder yesterday. While we already had a similar experience - I had the same procedure last year - it was still a bit harrowing. After all, you never know what will happen when it comes to surgery. It's not like one goes in and out without being cut open like when you get body acne treatment.

Worse, there were several incidents that made us feel very very uncomfortable (under…

...you don't think twice about swallowing an inch-long thing as thick as your pinky. Yup, a week after surgery, I got an infection and now, I have to take some other antibiotics. This brings me to my second point......you walk in the rain just to get those magic pills which will make the hurt go away. Walking in the rain is fun - if you're out in the countryside. Try walking in the city at dusk: dodging friggin' cars that won't stop even when you're crossing via the pedestrian lane; avoiding stepping on icky puddles; wishing you brought your umbrella; trying not to slip and make an ass of yourself...the list goes on and on....you know exactly what's wrong with you; you send your doctor a text message, and she says just buy these pills, and you'll be fine. The upside: it saves you on consultation fees!...your friends ask you what pill to take for what ailment. That's not exactly self-medication, is it?...the pharmacist knows you by name. Well, I&#…

We all have our happy pills, don't we? While some may associate happy pills with shady stuff, I think that there are some supplements that can make you "happy" simply because they help you achieve your goals. For example, if you take something to help you sleep when you've been having problems, then that's a happy pill. Or let's say you want to become muscular like those hunks on TV, you take supplements to help you become what you want. (In case you ARE looking for something like that, check out this muscle milk review. It's not for me - I have other happy pills to choose from - but you might be interested.)
Short background: I used to be called a pill popper. That's because I have a very low tolerance for pain and I'd take pills for practically anything. In the past few months, though, I haven't really taken many for one reason or the other.
Anyway, I just came back from the doctor. The good news is that she gave me some "happy …

For the life of me, I cannot come up with a Monday Pick Me Upper today. I started thinking about it last night but I guess the 2-hour swim exhausted me too much. Today, I have been in and out of the restroom chucking up what little I had ingested for lunch.
I don't even feel like writing but old habits die hard. A colleague was feeling off as well and she said something that made me think.
Psychosomatic.
That's the word she used. While she used it to describe herself, it's making me think. They say you can get physically ill because of emotional/psychological disturbance. Maybe it is true. I wonder if Medicare supplement will cover this kind of thing?
On the other hand, if you think you're psychosomatic, does that discount you as being one? Or maybe hypochondriac is a better word. (I wonder if Medicare will also cover these cases.)
I think I have to call it a day even if it's not even midnight. I hope my stomach doesn't wake me up in the middle of the ni…

***WARNING: Post may be disgusting for some...it's a woman thing ;)***

I have known that I have this condition for many years now, but I have never really paid much attention to it. After of over a year of not getting my monthly visitor, I started worrying a little bit. I knew I had to see the doctor but I just hate going to the clinic or hospital. When I struggled with a bout of asthma about three weeks ago though, I had to go to the clinic and while I was there, I went to see the OB as well.

Finally, I got started on doing something about PCOS. What is this PCOS anyway? I am no doctor so I got some info from Women's Health, which should explain the condition in a better manner:
Polycystic (pah-lee-SIS-tik) ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a health problem that can affect a woman's menstrual cycle, ability to have children, hormones, heart, blood vessels, and appearance. With PCOS, women typically have:

* high levels of androgens (AN-druh-junz). These are sometimes called m…

All sorts of people swear by their perfect cure for a hangover. I had a killer one today, brought about by an evening that was both enjoyable and stressful. I rarely have a bad hangover, but today was different. I spent almost all day in bed, hiding from daylight and noise. Unfortunately, I had made plans to go out with friends tonight so I had to get rid of that pounding head and queasy stomach FAST.

I think I have found THE cure:

1. Two extra strength Tylenols
2. An hour and half long deep tissue massage (I love how you can have the masseuse come to your house!)
3. A 500mg mefenamic acid tablet
4. Lots of water
5. A 2-hour nap

At the end of the day, I was able to get up, eat at a Chinese buffet (topped it off with 4 scoops of ice cream!), and spend several hours at a bar. It's 3 am now and I'm still going...

What's your hangover cure?

Photo courtesy of http://stuff.pyzam.com

This week has been hell for me - I have been so busy that I didn't even notice that I haven't written here since Tuesday! Yesterday was one of those days - too much work, nothing went right, and I just felt so sleepy and tired all day. I was downing cups of coffee like it was water and I didn't feel the effects. Today does not look any better...

I think I need something to boost my energy - at least until the end of the year. There are a lot of products that I can use in the market but I am not quite sure which is the most effective and yet safe at the same time. I have been reading up on Fenphedra, an energy supplement which boosts fat burning as well. Apparently, it is much better than other supplements in its category in terms of effects and pricing. Anyone know anything about it?

Pill poppers unite! LOL, I am just kidding. Pill popper might be derogatory for some people but hey, if you know the value and efficacy of pills, then why not take them? I know some people will be chuckling as they read this, as they know about my affinity for pills. As I always say, why suffer from the pain when you can do something about it?

Anyway, I knew since last night that a migraine episode was coming on...the left side of my head was tender and I could feel the throbbing start. True enough, I woke up early this morning to a pounding in my head.

I usually take two gel caps of Tylenol Extra Strength but lately, they do not seem to do the job. So this morning, I took Mefenamic Acid 500 mg. It did its magic within an hour - with the help of a short nap.

So which is better? I used to think it was Tylenol, now I am not so sure.

While we're on the subject of pills...I have seen news features on TV about guys peddling "interesting" pills for males in certain parts of Manila. I didn't really think we'd have our own encounter, though. We were walking along Makati Avenue with some friends because we wanted to get some burgers and milkshakes at the famed Filling Station. We haven't been there before and we were quite excited so we didn't really pay attention to our surroundings.

Imagine my surprise when this guy suddenly approaches Jerry - with me right beside him! - and asks him "Sir, Viagra, sir?" For those of you who might not know what it is (I can't imagine who doesn't know about Viagra), it is a pill to help deal with male impotence. There are other brands such as Cialis (main ingredient Tadalafil).

Anyhow, I couldn't control my laughter. I just burst out laughing - more at my husband's face! He looked just about ready to give the guy a smack in th…

This might be oversharing for some but I can't help it! Right after I posted the DHL update, I went to the fridge to get a drink and guess what I saw? My pack of BCP! For the first time, I missed a pill!!! (Needless to say, water spewed all over the kitchen...)

Believe me, I am very very conscientious when it comes to taking the pill. Getting pregnant is NOT on my list right now.

Of course, this prompted me to do research and this is what I found (thanks NZGirl):

If it is more than 12 hours late, take the missed active pill as soon as you remember even if you take two active pills in one day. Take your next pill at the usual time and discard any earlier missed pills. It’s important that you use another contraceptive method until you have taken 7 consecutive active pills. If the pack has less than 7 active pills take all active pills as normal, then throw the pack away (do not take the sugar pills) and immediately start a new pack taking an active pill from the corresponding week…