Back in residency, when I was 28, I was feeling much older than my age.  I felt tired and run down.  I could blame it on the 100 hour work weeks but it felt like it wasn't just sleep deprivation.  I had rosacea which where my cheeks were red, with deep pores, and little telangiectasias (little blood vessels) around my nose creases.  Make up couldn't cover it up.  I also had an inflammatory eye condition called episcleritis where I had bright red nodules in my eyes and everyone would ask me if I knew I had red eyes.  Ugh.  I was so frustrated and maybe vain but nonetheless, I didn't feel healthy.  I felt bloated after every meal and just wanted to desperately take a nap, which was a combination of the 100 hour work week but also my diet. I started taking doxycycline orally which is an antibiotic and another topically for the rosacea.  I was using steroid eye drops for the eye condition which will some day maybe still cause cataracts. ...

So when my kids get fever and congestion, and I make sure they don't have anything dangerous of course, I like to treat with as little medicine as possible. I admit that I don't typically worry too much but easy for me to say right? First of all, I do not use acetaminophen or ibuprofen for fever and never aspirin in a kid.  I must digress a little here...  Fever is a natural process that shows the body is doing its job.  Acetaminophen and ibuprofen stops or slows down that process. I could do a whole complicated blog on this one but trying to keep it simple.  I swear my kids got better faster when I learned this!  If your child is under 3 months of age, be sure to see your doctor right away. Babies can be tricky recognizing signs of serious illness.  Depending on the doctor, you may not want to treat the fever in your infant prior to seeing the doctor so they can verify it prior to doing potentially more extensive evaluations. My favorite treatment is t...

I met a young lady who has battled cancer since she was seven years old.  It was a brain tumor and she has endured surgeries, radiation, and worst, recurrences.  Her mama has that look in her eyes of wanting to naturally do anything to save her baby girl.  I met her mom first and after hearing the history of her daughter, I expected something totally different. Her daughter has such confidence and peace about her.  Just a matter of fact nature about her but not in a negative way.  She has faith.  She had a near death experience when she was younger and coming out of surgery.  She felt like she was in the arms of God and she saw her dad that had died when she was too young to remember him.  He told her "not yet".  Then she woke up. Now she is facing growing tumors in her brain and spine and she has maxed out radiation.  They are offering her another because that is her last choice.  Now she has the opportunity to visit her fami...