What Is Wrong With You?

As we get older we change. The hair gets thinner as the body gets thicker. Little aches and pains appear as flexibility diminishes. It is just part of life and we all know it. We’ve seen it in our parents and grandparents but never relate these changes to ourselves until it is to late.

When we gather for a party or around family or even at work, we talk about our ailments. We share stories about dealing with the pain and offer solutions others have tried.

Watching daytime television we find there are a whole bunch of ailments we have and never knew about. Luckily there is a solution for every one of them.

There are creams for wrinkles, pills for weight loss, magic potions for energy, all sorts of exercise machines to get you fit or chairs on rollers if needed. There is even a long list of lawyers who say you should be paid for being disabled.

What’s up with that? Get paid for being sick?

Being sick or feeling ill or having pain is not very much fun, but if it makes you money. With all the ailments around there may be some cash in yours. At least take the time to fill out some forms and see what you can get. This seems to be a theme of daytime television.

Unfortunately I have the scares of going to the doctor and getting put back together again so I try not to get any more. I avoid the hospitals because that is where they keep sick people. I avoid the doc-in-the-box offices because you can pick up all kind of stuff there. And when you see a kid or worse, a bunch of kids, you know they are carrying every disease in the world. Even at the store if a person in the same aisle sneezes, I turn around and head the other direction.

I’m not totally immune. Once a year I get a cold. The usual stuffed up head, sniffles and runny nose. Three days coming, three day here, and three days going is my rule of thumb. It is the only time I buy medicine. One pack of antihistamine will last for the period of the cold. After that I’m done.

Now we all get a little twinge of a snuffle when spring starts and can get a sneeze or two from dust bunnies (don’t come to my house) but for the most part, I we get outside and take some deep breathes while walking to the store or riding your bike in the open air, the body adjust and you keep moving.

Other than that, I take no pills or ointments. Well, let me clarify that statement. I do put band aids on cuts or slaughter Vick’s vapor-rub on when it is difficult to sleep or rub down with Vaseline when the skin is tired, but that is all in the medicine cabinet. The aspirin bottle is full and at least five years old. The hot rub cream is not needed since I’ve gotten old and slow and less likely to pull a muscle.

In a couple of months I’ll be invited to join the Medicare family so I don’t think it is worth my time to try and get a couple of bucks for some made up ailment or condition.

Then again, I like it this way.