Health Care
Mood:  down
Topic: WC - Daily Practice
Saturday 8:06pm 12Aug06

Society is more accepting of alternative medicine but it still has a long way to go. What would a character have to go through in order to consider alternative medicine? What type of character believes in exploring alternative medical options versus a character that does everything his or her doctor prescribes?

When I had my major skin problems years ago, I went to a naturopath and took Chinese herbs and pills and creams to deal with it. As a daycare teacher I saw a parent with one of her kids that had similar skin problems and I mentioned what I'd used. The mother said that although she would try this for herself she would never take that chance with her daughter. She only believed so far but couldn't fool around with her child's health. If I had a child, would my views change? I honestly don't know. Mind you, with my own health, I went Western first and then delved into Eastern because the Western method of treating my condition with steroid creams scared me.

I've been prescribed Celebrex for my arthritis and was told that one of the side effects is stomach problems and/or bleeding in the stomach. So my feet may feel better but I'll be bleeding internally? Holy Cow! Celebrex is from the same makers of Vioxx which was taken off the market. That doesn't exactly bode well for Celebrex, in my opinion.

What type of side effects is your character suffering from? How could side effects affect a character's story?

EY