At a home party last time, i was told by multiple people independently that 1) I don't look Japanese（日本人に見えない！！）and 2) I don't look my age (they actually guessed older.... which to me isn't very flattering) （えーー未だ２＃だけなの？大人っぽいね。落ち着いてるね）.
These are comments I get all the time everywhere.
I admit, compared to other Japanese girls my age, I at least act older. In fact, Japanese people are always commenting on how "american girls" seem so much older. Even when I was in middle school, I thought my classmates were a little more childish compared to my own. How? That's difficult to say... less independence? less defined personality? less ambition for something greater? more shy with a quivering sense of self? There must be something about the "American childhood" or values or education or SOMETHING that raises children to be so obviously difference from japanese children. What that is, I can't put a finger on quite yet.
By blood, I'm 100% Japanese. Yet, people in the US and people in Japan have this idea of what a typical Japanese woman looks like, and for some reason, I don't fall into that category. I guess that also means they have an idea of what non-Japanese looks like. One thing about Japan that I find unfortunate is that it can be xenophobic... it can be afraid, unwelcoming, or just distant from what they view as the "other." Of course, Japanese are obsessed with the "Western" world -- fashion, music, food, the brown hair, big-eyed european... But there's a difference between staring at wonder - like a piece displayed at a museum - versus that "other thing" becoming an intimate part of their lives.
I was speaking to one 34 year old gentleman who's been working in Texas as an antique dealer for 5 years. He told me that he initially could not get used to the lifestyle here, but now, he really loves it. His wife has only been here for about 3 years and desires to go back to Tokyo. They have one 2 year old daughter. One of his worries was that he doesn't know whether or not to raise his child in the US or in Japan. He doesn't know which is "better" for his child. But one truth is that if they stay in the US, his child will inevitably be "americanized," and he can't imagine his child being culturally different from him. Of course, as long as his child is happy and is raised properly with good values, that's the best he could ask for. So he admits this worry must be so miniscule but he does think about it. He then said that I act very Japanese, so he's feeling more reassured after meeting me.I honestly have never really thought about that ever... maybe because I AM like that daughter, raised in a bi-cultural environment. I will never be fully "american" and never fully "japanese" at the same time -- whatever that means! But I take pride in that. Not being able to be placed in to a label box.
But I wonder, how good are those label boxes for anyone, really. Can people be put in a box of japanese or american? And how productive is that? Yea, I don't look Japanese, I may act Japanese, I am genetically Japanese, I seem more mature than Japanese my age -- but none of those description really say anything about me at all. Trying to put people in categories ultimately create the in vs. out, familiar vs. other, us vs. them - that kind of mentality. Not that this isn't beneficial at times, but it can slow down true growth....? true acceptance? true celebration of humanity in the world? haha getting cheesy now.
sigh. These are issues i will probably continue thinking about throughout my life. Perhaps I will come to new realizations after I start a family of my own.
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Difficult introduction of 2 cats pt.II
It has been a week since I've adopted my new kitten, and I am thrilled.
The introduction process - although going slowly at first - suddenly took off!
Day 3
By day 3, I had decided to introduce the two through just a cage, uncovered.
On day 2, I took new kitten to the vet, so during that time, I let resident cat sniff out the bathroom where kitten was confined. I also covered the carrier with a cloth, and put that in the center of the living room. Of course, resident cat hissed at it.
So here are the steps for Day 3
- I put new kitten in the carrier and placed it initially covered, in the living room.
- Let resident cat become aware of its presence
- I then took out resident cat's favorite treats and gave them to her in front of the still covered cage
- Slowly, I unveiled the cage while the resident cat was scarfing down the treats
- Lots of hissing. Even a cat punch. Actually, resident cat even cat punched me when I was trying to push new kitten's paws back into the cage. It's funny, even though a big cat is hissing and punching right in front of him, new kitten didnt seem scared at all. He was sticking out his paws through the cage, meowing. Luckily, resident cat has never punched baring her nails, so I didn't get hope and hopefully kitten didn't either
- After the treats, I just left the cage uncovered, in the room for 30-40 minutes.
Day 4 - MIRACLE DAY!
So Day 4... Perhaps I was rushing. BUT, I decided to just introduce them face-to-face
Why so soon? Well -- I saw resident cat and kitten pawing at each other through the crack of the bathroom door.
Resident cat didn't seem afraid of the kitten anymore, and definitely less hissing. She also just lay by the bathroom, relaxed.
So what I did:
- Again, I put kitten in carrier and put it in the living room.
- Once resident cat was aware.... I just opened the cage door. Let nature run its course!
- Cautiously, kitten steps out.
- No hissing yet!
- Kitten then begins exploring the living room
- Resident cat follows kitten
- Kitten starts playing with the curtain strings.
- Resident cat curiously paws at the kitten.
- Kitten takes off in a run -- Cat follows -- then a long whirlwind of cat-chase begins.
- They switch being chased and chasing.
Now, 1 week after adoption, I hear no hissing at all. They get along great. Rough play a lot, resident cat even licks kitten sometimes, they eat food together...
I think things will be just fine.
:D
The introduction process - although going slowly at first - suddenly took off!
Day 3
By day 3, I had decided to introduce the two through just a cage, uncovered.
On day 2, I took new kitten to the vet, so during that time, I let resident cat sniff out the bathroom where kitten was confined. I also covered the carrier with a cloth, and put that in the center of the living room. Of course, resident cat hissed at it.
So here are the steps for Day 3
- I put new kitten in the carrier and placed it initially covered, in the living room.
- Let resident cat become aware of its presence
- I then took out resident cat's favorite treats and gave them to her in front of the still covered cage
- Slowly, I unveiled the cage while the resident cat was scarfing down the treats
- Lots of hissing. Even a cat punch. Actually, resident cat even cat punched me when I was trying to push new kitten's paws back into the cage. It's funny, even though a big cat is hissing and punching right in front of him, new kitten didnt seem scared at all. He was sticking out his paws through the cage, meowing. Luckily, resident cat has never punched baring her nails, so I didn't get hope and hopefully kitten didn't either
- After the treats, I just left the cage uncovered, in the room for 30-40 minutes.
Day 4 - MIRACLE DAY!
So Day 4... Perhaps I was rushing. BUT, I decided to just introduce them face-to-face
Why so soon? Well -- I saw resident cat and kitten pawing at each other through the crack of the bathroom door.
Resident cat didn't seem afraid of the kitten anymore, and definitely less hissing. She also just lay by the bathroom, relaxed.
So what I did:
- Again, I put kitten in carrier and put it in the living room.
- Once resident cat was aware.... I just opened the cage door. Let nature run its course!
- Cautiously, kitten steps out.
- No hissing yet!
- Kitten then begins exploring the living room
- Resident cat follows kitten
- Kitten starts playing with the curtain strings.
- Resident cat curiously paws at the kitten.
- Kitten takes off in a run -- Cat follows -- then a long whirlwind of cat-chase begins.
- They switch being chased and chasing.
Now, 1 week after adoption, I hear no hissing at all. They get along great. Rough play a lot, resident cat even licks kitten sometimes, they eat food together...
I think things will be just fine.
:D
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Difficult Introduction of 2 cats
My last true summer is almost over.
It has been a very fruitful one - my internship has been an amazing experience. My mentor is amazing, the surgeries I've seen and patients I've meet have been truly engaging.
I feel like I have stepped out of this summer a little bit more mature. I have a clear direction - surgery - that I want to go. And I feel ignited with ambition and determination, something very important during these long years of constant studying, where we often feel the fuel drain away as we burn out.
In other news, I am on a quick 10-day vacation. Well, not really a vacation because I have a lot of work to do - but my mentor is out of town, so I can work from home.
During this time, I decided to adopt a new kitten.
I have one cat - a tortoiseshell - who is about 1 year and 2 months. I found her in my parking lot last summer, and my boyfriend decided that adopt her. I found her right before my 1-month trip to SE Asia, so I wasn't planning on adopting her. I was going to feed her, take care of her shots/immunizations, socialize her a bit, and then ask a shelter to take her in. We found her at 5-6 weeks, so still a very young kitten and thus popular among adopted pets.
I went to several shelters in the area and finally found the kitten I thought would be the one. It's a boy, 8 weeks, and a creamy orange tabby. He has white feet (like stockings) and a white belly. Cutest little thing.
The introduction - still ongoing - is progressing... slow or fast? Depends, I suppose. I've read that cats can take from hours to months to accept one another... And some might never. But I wasn't expecting my resident cat to react with such aggression... so the road has been difficult.
Day 1
Day 1 was simple. I adopted kitten in the early afternoon (Wed Jul 20), and once I got home, I took him to the bathroom where I set up his temporary confinement. I brought back the carrier and placed it in the living room for resident cat to smell. So far... no hissing... Then I went into the bathroom and cuddle with kitten for a while, letting him know that everything is okay and that he is safe. Then I left my apartment and went back to work. Wanted to give both of them time to just calm down.
At night, I played with resident cat.
Troubles 1: When I went into the bathroom to be with kitten for a while, then when I came out, resident cat was really quite angry. Her posture was tense. I let her smell my hand and she actually growled and hiss at it many times. She didn't attack me or anything, but I have never seen her growl or hiss except just once at the vet. So surprised... I was expecting just curiosity at the least... and was really hoping for that chirping purr that resident cat did to the neighborhood stray cats. I guess since kitten was actually in her turf, she felt threatened.
I covered the crack under the door so that they won't be able to see each other, and just went to bed. Resident cat never came close to the door. Just hissed at it from a distance
Patience seems to be the true virtue in this scenarios. Don't rush anything!
It has been a very fruitful one - my internship has been an amazing experience. My mentor is amazing, the surgeries I've seen and patients I've meet have been truly engaging.
I feel like I have stepped out of this summer a little bit more mature. I have a clear direction - surgery - that I want to go. And I feel ignited with ambition and determination, something very important during these long years of constant studying, where we often feel the fuel drain away as we burn out.
In other news, I am on a quick 10-day vacation. Well, not really a vacation because I have a lot of work to do - but my mentor is out of town, so I can work from home.
During this time, I decided to adopt a new kitten.
I have one cat - a tortoiseshell - who is about 1 year and 2 months. I found her in my parking lot last summer, and my boyfriend decided that adopt her. I found her right before my 1-month trip to SE Asia, so I wasn't planning on adopting her. I was going to feed her, take care of her shots/immunizations, socialize her a bit, and then ask a shelter to take her in. We found her at 5-6 weeks, so still a very young kitten and thus popular among adopted pets.
I went to several shelters in the area and finally found the kitten I thought would be the one. It's a boy, 8 weeks, and a creamy orange tabby. He has white feet (like stockings) and a white belly. Cutest little thing.
The introduction - still ongoing - is progressing... slow or fast? Depends, I suppose. I've read that cats can take from hours to months to accept one another... And some might never. But I wasn't expecting my resident cat to react with such aggression... so the road has been difficult.
Day 1
Day 1 was simple. I adopted kitten in the early afternoon (Wed Jul 20), and once I got home, I took him to the bathroom where I set up his temporary confinement. I brought back the carrier and placed it in the living room for resident cat to smell. So far... no hissing... Then I went into the bathroom and cuddle with kitten for a while, letting him know that everything is okay and that he is safe. Then I left my apartment and went back to work. Wanted to give both of them time to just calm down.
At night, I played with resident cat.
Troubles 1: When I went into the bathroom to be with kitten for a while, then when I came out, resident cat was really quite angry. Her posture was tense. I let her smell my hand and she actually growled and hiss at it many times. She didn't attack me or anything, but I have never seen her growl or hiss except just once at the vet. So surprised... I was expecting just curiosity at the least... and was really hoping for that chirping purr that resident cat did to the neighborhood stray cats. I guess since kitten was actually in her turf, she felt threatened.
I covered the crack under the door so that they won't be able to see each other, and just went to bed. Resident cat never came close to the door. Just hissed at it from a distance
Patience seems to be the true virtue in this scenarios. Don't rush anything!
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Japan like a Native
I have a lot of friends ask me about Japanese food; and to be frank --- most people only know Japanese food as sushi, tempura, and maybe teriyaki chicken.
For example, my friend asked me my favorite local Japanese restaurant. I say Sushi Ro****. And he replies, oh, their sushi rolls were okay... AH! Did you even see the other 70% of the menu? All of the fried, grilled, steamed dishes? The robata-yaki menu?? What about just good ol' ankimo (あんきも monk fish liver pate) with a nice glass of cold beer??
So, since I do have a passion for food, I would like to start a list of "authentic" foods to try in Japan. I put quotes around authentic because, well, what is really authentic? Great Japanese cuisine can actually be what we called "fusion" food. Some creative Japanese chefs can be experimenting with the traditional, and I still think that can be considered "authentic" because its heart and its creators are rooted in tastes of Japan and you know what, it tastes good. So... what I guess I won't call "authentic" is a sweet sticky, thigh fillet "teriyaki chicken" with a boob-shaped mold of rice (that's not even cooked in the teriyaki way! teriyaki, btw, is more of a style of grilling food over charcoal and basting it constantly with gooey and flavorful sauce that a restaurant will spend years mastering and developing. grilling of kabob-ed food is just referred to as robata-yaki)
List of foods to try: Part 1
Salty-and-Flavorful Rich
1) Ramen（ラーメン）. Of course. Most people know what Ramen is. But I'm not talking about the instant maru-chan crap that's sold in grocery stores here. Small hole in the walls can be some of the greatest. Just find somewhere you see a bunch of Japanese people. Really. All Japanese menu probably is a good thing too. Just point and smile and eat whatever comes out. I can guarantee it'll taste great.
1.1) Tsuke-men (ツケメン). I had this at 2am with my boyfriend after a whole night of drinking in celebration of a good friend's wedding. Let me tell you, whatever late-night drunk food the US has, it can't beat this. It's noodles with a hot dipping saucy soup. But so much more. The noodle of thicker and chewy. The dipping soup is thicker than just broth... and has this delicious Chinese/Japanese flavor... and the soup tastes like it's been cooking and perfecting for days.
2) Motsu-nabe （もつ鍋）Now this will take some research to find a restaurant that serves this delicious dish. Last winter, I had dinner at one very popular motsu-nabe restaurant near Ebisu. It was.... incredible. So amazingly good. Nabe is hot-pot. Motsu is, well, intestines. BUT don't let that gross you out! It's actually flavorful, chewy but tender, and the hot-pot broth/soup they make for it is so rich and beautiful. Don't forget to finish the meal with either rice or udon cooked in the hot-pot broth that become even richer in flavor with the motsu/other vegetables you've cooked in it.
3) Monja-yaki (もんじゃ焼き）Ohhh my uncle introduced me to this dish. It's basically a rendition of Okonomi-yaki (what I've heard English speakers call the pizza of Japan. Not really but okay). But anyways, okonomi-yaki style varies all over the country and every household has a unique way of making it... so I'm not going to talk much about it... Basically think of it like a pancake bound with a type of flour and cabbage usually, filled with whatever-you-want-to-eat. Monja is basically a more gooey form of it. You eat it with this mini-shovel-like spoons. It's cooked over a teppan, and you do it yourself too. I guess it's the melting but mochi-type quality of it that I love.
I would love to post pictures from actual Japanese sites/bloggers... but with the current blogger set-up, I can't just put pictures from other sites directly onto blogger (even if I display the link the follow! Grr. I have to add it into my picasa or something. A bit inconvenient)
For example, my friend asked me my favorite local Japanese restaurant. I say Sushi Ro****. And he replies, oh, their sushi rolls were okay... AH! Did you even see the other 70% of the menu? All of the fried, grilled, steamed dishes? The robata-yaki menu?? What about just good ol' ankimo (あんきも monk fish liver pate) with a nice glass of cold beer??
So, since I do have a passion for food, I would like to start a list of "authentic" foods to try in Japan. I put quotes around authentic because, well, what is really authentic? Great Japanese cuisine can actually be what we called "fusion" food. Some creative Japanese chefs can be experimenting with the traditional, and I still think that can be considered "authentic" because its heart and its creators are rooted in tastes of Japan and you know what, it tastes good. So... what I guess I won't call "authentic" is a sweet sticky, thigh fillet "teriyaki chicken" with a boob-shaped mold of rice (that's not even cooked in the teriyaki way! teriyaki, btw, is more of a style of grilling food over charcoal and basting it constantly with gooey and flavorful sauce that a restaurant will spend years mastering and developing. grilling of kabob-ed food is just referred to as robata-yaki)
List of foods to try: Part 1
Salty-and-Flavorful Rich
1) Ramen（ラーメン）. Of course. Most people know what Ramen is. But I'm not talking about the instant maru-chan crap that's sold in grocery stores here. Small hole in the walls can be some of the greatest. Just find somewhere you see a bunch of Japanese people. Really. All Japanese menu probably is a good thing too. Just point and smile and eat whatever comes out. I can guarantee it'll taste great.
1.1) Tsuke-men (ツケメン). I had this at 2am with my boyfriend after a whole night of drinking in celebration of a good friend's wedding. Let me tell you, whatever late-night drunk food the US has, it can't beat this. It's noodles with a hot dipping saucy soup. But so much more. The noodle of thicker and chewy. The dipping soup is thicker than just broth... and has this delicious Chinese/Japanese flavor... and the soup tastes like it's been cooking and perfecting for days.
2) Motsu-nabe （もつ鍋）Now this will take some research to find a restaurant that serves this delicious dish. Last winter, I had dinner at one very popular motsu-nabe restaurant near Ebisu. It was.... incredible. So amazingly good. Nabe is hot-pot. Motsu is, well, intestines. BUT don't let that gross you out! It's actually flavorful, chewy but tender, and the hot-pot broth/soup they make for it is so rich and beautiful. Don't forget to finish the meal with either rice or udon cooked in the hot-pot broth that become even richer in flavor with the motsu/other vegetables you've cooked in it.
3) Monja-yaki (もんじゃ焼き）Ohhh my uncle introduced me to this dish. It's basically a rendition of Okonomi-yaki (what I've heard English speakers call the pizza of Japan. Not really but okay). But anyways, okonomi-yaki style varies all over the country and every household has a unique way of making it... so I'm not going to talk much about it... Basically think of it like a pancake bound with a type of flour and cabbage usually, filled with whatever-you-want-to-eat. Monja is basically a more gooey form of it. You eat it with this mini-shovel-like spoons. It's cooked over a teppan, and you do it yourself too. I guess it's the melting but mochi-type quality of it that I love.
I would love to post pictures from actual Japanese sites/bloggers... but with the current blogger set-up, I can't just put pictures from other sites directly onto blogger (even if I display the link the follow! Grr. I have to add it into my picasa or something. A bit inconvenient)
Listen to the Body
Listen: It can tell us many things if we just pay attention to its whisper. Listen: Because by the time our body is yelling at us, it may be too late.
As I grow older, I know that I will witness the passing of many close and loved ones. I am afraid, although I know it is inevitable.
Yesterday, my boyfriend's young friend passed away of lung cancer at the blossoming age of 32. He was married, has a 1 year old baby boy, healthy and fit as can be. Thirty Two Years Old. Far too young... Do the good really have to die young?
My boyfriend met up with him a month or 2 ago as this friend was in TX for a business trip. He said that the friend seemed fine, but he did ask my boyfriend how his health was. My boyfriend laughed saying, everything is good, just getting older and fatter. The friend, however, said that his lower back has been really aching lately. In early May, he finally went to the doctor and they diagnosed him with metastatic end-stage lung cancer. He died only a few weeks later, complete shocking everyone. Even a mere 4-5 days before his death, he was eating home-made food from friends, saying how delicious it was. Just a week before his death, he was writing to people that although the treatment is aggressive, draining, and sometimes painful, he is feeling better and feels physically and mentally ready for a full-blown chemo or radiation therapy. And then he just... dies. At 32.
Listen to your body... At 32, so young and fit... a chronic back ache that seems strange and misplaced really might be your body telling you "something is wrong! get it checked out!" Just make a quick appointment to a family doctor... go to a screening. If you can, just order some X-rays. Really, not as expensive as MRIs or CTs or PET scans. I would much rather be labeled a hypochondriac then to realize a disease too late.
My mother also told me that her lab member came to her this past week, saying that he has stage 4 renal cell carcinoma. Prognosis... I don't know... But the tumors on his kidneys are large. My mother cried and cried and cried. She noticed that he had been losing weight lately, and her co-worker just said, yea! I've been working out every Thursday after work, and I feel great afterwards. But think about it! Working out one day a week can't lead to noticeable weight loss... That was probably another big sign the body was trying to shout out.
As I grow older, I know that I will witness the passing of many close and loved ones. I am afraid, although I know it is inevitable.
Yesterday, my boyfriend's young friend passed away of lung cancer at the blossoming age of 32. He was married, has a 1 year old baby boy, healthy and fit as can be. Thirty Two Years Old. Far too young... Do the good really have to die young?
My boyfriend met up with him a month or 2 ago as this friend was in TX for a business trip. He said that the friend seemed fine, but he did ask my boyfriend how his health was. My boyfriend laughed saying, everything is good, just getting older and fatter. The friend, however, said that his lower back has been really aching lately. In early May, he finally went to the doctor and they diagnosed him with metastatic end-stage lung cancer. He died only a few weeks later, complete shocking everyone. Even a mere 4-5 days before his death, he was eating home-made food from friends, saying how delicious it was. Just a week before his death, he was writing to people that although the treatment is aggressive, draining, and sometimes painful, he is feeling better and feels physically and mentally ready for a full-blown chemo or radiation therapy. And then he just... dies. At 32.
Listen to your body... At 32, so young and fit... a chronic back ache that seems strange and misplaced really might be your body telling you "something is wrong! get it checked out!" Just make a quick appointment to a family doctor... go to a screening. If you can, just order some X-rays. Really, not as expensive as MRIs or CTs or PET scans. I would much rather be labeled a hypochondriac then to realize a disease too late.
My mother also told me that her lab member came to her this past week, saying that he has stage 4 renal cell carcinoma. Prognosis... I don't know... But the tumors on his kidneys are large. My mother cried and cried and cried. She noticed that he had been losing weight lately, and her co-worker just said, yea! I've been working out every Thursday after work, and I feel great afterwards. But think about it! Working out one day a week can't lead to noticeable weight loss... That was probably another big sign the body was trying to shout out.
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Cancer Screening
There was a free melanoma screening event going on at several of the local hospitals/clinics today, so I took my boyfriend there. He has many many moles all over his body, and although he is Asian, that isn't an automatic guaranteed protection from skin cancer. These screenings are free and there for many good reasons with good intent, so why not use the available resources?
First, I had the doctor check his back, which has a light colored but large mole which the doctor said is probably is a birth mark and nothing to worry about. Although the shape is large and irregular, the mole itself is even in tone and very light. He has other darker spots around his back that he should stay aware of but are too small for any kind of intervention at the moment.
I then asked the physician to check his legs, which do have darker spots/moles. Indeed, he pointed to a few more which were a little darker and bigger and requires attention to make sure they don't get bigger or change in any way.
Then, he found a lesion in the lateral portion of his calf. I knew he had that mole/moles - I called it the triangle of moles and jokingly told my bf that I will use that mark to identify his body if his face had become too damaged. I honestly thought it was a clump of three moles that were close together, and my bf said he thinks he's had for quite a while. So I wasn't too worried. The doctor, however, did say that was very abnormal and needed to be removed and biopsied immediately - within a week. My gut says that it's benign because it's been there fore the 2 years that I've dated him and I don't think it's changed in the 2 years I've been with him either.
We'll set up an appointment this week to get the lesion excised.
But the lesson is - free screenings are such great events. Everyone should take advantage of them. They're preventative and can catch diseases which have great prognosis with early intervention. People may scorn and say - oh hyperchondriacs - but really, better safe than sorry. This is a perfectly rational and reasonable way to ease any anxiety and make sure your health is at its best. Nothing is lost at all. What is truly ridiculous is to freak out and pile up with worries and pay hundreds of dollars to see physician after physician for expensive diagnostics... when quick screenings are free. Even a quick trip to the family doctor is relatively cheap with insurance. And, what is truly sad, is to notice something about your body that doesn't seem right then NOT do anything about it... until it's really too late.
Life is too short.. take small preventative measures early on and prevent major damage and pain later on.
First, I had the doctor check his back, which has a light colored but large mole which the doctor said is probably is a birth mark and nothing to worry about. Although the shape is large and irregular, the mole itself is even in tone and very light. He has other darker spots around his back that he should stay aware of but are too small for any kind of intervention at the moment.
I then asked the physician to check his legs, which do have darker spots/moles. Indeed, he pointed to a few more which were a little darker and bigger and requires attention to make sure they don't get bigger or change in any way.
Then, he found a lesion in the lateral portion of his calf. I knew he had that mole/moles - I called it the triangle of moles and jokingly told my bf that I will use that mark to identify his body if his face had become too damaged. I honestly thought it was a clump of three moles that were close together, and my bf said he thinks he's had for quite a while. So I wasn't too worried. The doctor, however, did say that was very abnormal and needed to be removed and biopsied immediately - within a week. My gut says that it's benign because it's been there fore the 2 years that I've dated him and I don't think it's changed in the 2 years I've been with him either.
We'll set up an appointment this week to get the lesion excised.
But the lesson is - free screenings are such great events. Everyone should take advantage of them. They're preventative and can catch diseases which have great prognosis with early intervention. People may scorn and say - oh hyperchondriacs - but really, better safe than sorry. This is a perfectly rational and reasonable way to ease any anxiety and make sure your health is at its best. Nothing is lost at all. What is truly ridiculous is to freak out and pile up with worries and pay hundreds of dollars to see physician after physician for expensive diagnostics... when quick screenings are free. Even a quick trip to the family doctor is relatively cheap with insurance. And, what is truly sad, is to notice something about your body that doesn't seem right then NOT do anything about it... until it's really too late.
Life is too short.. take small preventative measures early on and prevent major damage and pain later on.
Friday, May 20, 2011
Hospital Visit
For our last college mentor session, Dr. Cx took us to Parkland to meet with a patient and also get practice hearing various diastolic and systolic heart murmurs.
Regarding the latter, I am still extremely bad at detecting the murmurs. I have no idea what I'm looking for and where I am looking for it. But, Dr. Cx said that he was a junior resident before he could hear some of the murmurs. But once you hear it once, you will always be able to hear it. That is reassuring.
The more moving part of the day was our talk with our patient. She is a 25 year old woman battling stage 4 breast cancer that has metastasized all over her body... 25 years old.
She said that she felt a lump on her breast around 18-19 but didn't really do anything about it. However, around 24 years old, she said she couldn't eat anymore because of nausea and pain, lost about 60 lbs. The doctors originally said she had gastroentitis... the horrible thing is, they felt a lump on her breast and took an X-Ray, but she never got the results back. She's currently in a little law suit but that is absolutely terrible. The neglect and mistake of not even looking at an X-Ray result probably cost the patient her life... or severely shortened it. When they finally diagnosed her with cancer, she was already stage 4. The amazing thing is, however, it's been 14 months since her diagnosis. She has gone through bouts of chemotherapy and radiation therapy, and though she never feels 100% well or herself, she still is trying to live life normally. That's absolutely amazing..
But god... 25 years old. That is way too young. way way way too young.
Regarding the latter, I am still extremely bad at detecting the murmurs. I have no idea what I'm looking for and where I am looking for it. But, Dr. Cx said that he was a junior resident before he could hear some of the murmurs. But once you hear it once, you will always be able to hear it. That is reassuring.
The more moving part of the day was our talk with our patient. She is a 25 year old woman battling stage 4 breast cancer that has metastasized all over her body... 25 years old.
She said that she felt a lump on her breast around 18-19 but didn't really do anything about it. However, around 24 years old, she said she couldn't eat anymore because of nausea and pain, lost about 60 lbs. The doctors originally said she had gastroentitis... the horrible thing is, they felt a lump on her breast and took an X-Ray, but she never got the results back. She's currently in a little law suit but that is absolutely terrible. The neglect and mistake of not even looking at an X-Ray result probably cost the patient her life... or severely shortened it. When they finally diagnosed her with cancer, she was already stage 4. The amazing thing is, however, it's been 14 months since her diagnosis. She has gone through bouts of chemotherapy and radiation therapy, and though she never feels 100% well or herself, she still is trying to live life normally. That's absolutely amazing..
But god... 25 years old. That is way too young. way way way too young.
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