juliablogs30-blog

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Day Thirty

And here it is: the final blog post. I did it! Well, kind of. I would like to take this time to reflect a little on how this went for me.

Here’s the deal: I did not write one of these per day. I did for about two weeks, and then I started writing them in bunches. This is because, first of all (this is not an exaggeration) I have probably tried to keep a journal about 20 different times throughout the course of my life, and I have never succeeded. I don’t know what it is, but it’s really difficult for me! 

I’ve been thinking about it a lot, and honestly, I think it has a lot to do with how my thinking works. When I sit down to do something, I commit, and I don’t limit my time. I feel like this is why writing every day is hard for me; trying to do something for a short time every day doesn’t get my ideas flowing. I feel like I need about 20 minutes just to warm up. By the time I get inspired, I want to keep going and going. I really preferred writing two or three posts at a time, and I think that’s why: I get much better ideas when I sit down and generate thought for an hour as opposed to fifteen minutes, and unfortunately, I don’t have a whole hour to sit down and blog every day. Maybe I could be a bi-weekly or try-weekly blogger instead.

Despite my struggling, I didn’t dislike this project. I got to dig really deep on ideas surrounding consumption, and I really got to analyze my life, which turned into an analysis of my health. Along with journalling, I struggle to stay organized, and when I take the time to do something like this, I figure a lot of things out.

So please, excuse the parts of my posts that seemed like my personal journal. I hope they were alright, because I really suspect that they will help me in the projects to come. 

Thank you,

Julia

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COLLECTION, part 4

My collection is going to look a little different this week. I am collecting body modifiers, and this week, I am going to collect some body modifiers that I want. I may have had them in the past, I may have never had them before, but here are my goals as I build the person I would like to become.

1) I would like to modify my stomach area. I will likely modify this with a combination of diet change and increased exercise. I will cut out the carbs for a few weeks, combined with cardio and weights at the rec center at least three times per week.

2) I am going to dye my hair. This is purely for fun, and honestly will be a bonding activity for me and a friend who is struggling. I have no idea how it will turn out, but I’ll give it a shot.

3) I would like to find another method of birth control. Oral contraceptives are a huge “no!” from me, but I would like another layer of protection. I am not ready to use sex as a body modifier--or maker.

4) I would like to pierce my nose. Art, and expression.

5) I would like to consider different anxiety medication. I just wonder if there’s a way to avoid the more exhausting side effects of Escitalopram.

6) I would like to have a kinder inner monologue. I am harsh, I am a perfectionist, and I am judgmental--to myself. I do not feel this way about anyone else. In fact, I am so empathetic towards others that it doesn’t make sense. I should modify that.

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Day Twenty-Nine

This is Gabbie Hanna. Gabbie Hanna is a vine star turned YouTuber who has found pretty incredible success. Through the fame her YouTube channel brought her, she has been able to tackle one recurring insecurity of hers: her body. Gabbie was 5′5 and 149 lbs in October of 2017, when she decided she wanted to do something about her health. Over the course of eight months, Gabbie lost 5 pounds (which doesn’t seem impressive at first glance), but more importantly lost 10% of her body fat and 5 inches off her waist. Here is her before and after:

I relate to Gabbie very, very much. I have the same anxiety disorder as her, I’m only two pounds lighter than her starting weight, and I’m one inch shorter. Pre-transformation Gabbie and I share a lot of things in common. So, what would I need to do to go down the route she did?

I would have to go to the gym for two hours every day of my life, for starters. That training would be done with a notorious (expensive) personal trainer. I would not have any added sugars, eating only natural sugars in fruits, and I would not be able to have any snacks, ever.

I am speculating here, but pre-wealth, I highly doubt she could have accomplished this. Not only is she wealthy, but she is her own boss--she sets her own schedule, making it much easier to set aside gym time. Good for Gabbie; it’s nice to see that someone out there can make ends meet. Nevertheless, this is the kind of advantage some wealthy people have in terms of health.

The women who live on Park Ave. in New York are some of the wealthiest women in the US. With this living location, however, there is an added pressure: you must look perfect. Jana Klauer, a diet doctor for the residents of Park Ave., says that these wealthy women achieve their health and perfect bodies by “eliminating all processed food, alcohol and carbohydrates and substituting it with protein and calcium.” She also says, “you must be willing to change your entire lifestyle and eating habits, [and] work out every day.”

So, to reiterate: to lose weight like the rich, you need to change everything about your life. You need to hire a personal trainer or a Jana Klauer. Honestly, you need to go to extremes. And the wealthy have the time and money to do that, if they so please. Some wealthy people are incredibly busy, so maybe not all of them have the time, but their advantages are great, and their bodies are slim.

[juliablogs30-blog]

Day Twenty-Eight

Alright, I have looked further into WHY people of lower socioeconomic status (SES) are more likely to be overweight and obese in America.

The Atlantic sites a reason as being that “the poorest Americans are . . . less likely to use proven weight-loss strategies, relying instead on quick fixes like diet pills.” This claim is backed up by the American Journal of Preventive Medicine’s study, where they studied 8,000 people’s weight over a period of time. 2/3 of them were trying to lose weight, but that group ended up gaining an average of 3 pounds. And the people in the low-income group gained an average of two pounds more than those in the highest one. Surveys of their weight loss methods showed that 

“those making less than $20,000 were 

A) 50 percent less likely to exercise

B) 42 percent less likely to drink a lot of water

C) 25 percent less likely to eat less fat and sweets.” 

Still, why? Why don’t the people in the lower bracket do the things that are proven to help lose weight? Well, healthy food is more expensive than unhealthy food. And according to Quartz, “people on food stamps tend to purchase cheap, unhealthy products in an attempt to stretch their food budgets.” I deeply relate to this. I’m at a point in my life where I just need food, period. This leads to a lot of ramen, frozen things like chicken nuggets, and lots of other unhealthy foods.

Despite this, it doesn't appear to always be an issue of finances. People who made between $20,000 and $75,000 were the bracket that used the most diet pills, which both cost money and are also unproven and often ineffective. Alternatively, experts think that, and I would like to make this very bold,

“the stressful lives of poor people make sticking to a diet and exercise plan more difficult.”

In fact, a study cited in the Atlantic article discovered that the mental and emotional strain of poverty is similar to the effect of losing 13 IQ points. Something else that stands out to me very, very much is the following:

“People who experienced economic uncertainty gave up on solving a difficult puzzle faster.”

Am I giving up on solving the puzzle of health too fast? Is it easier to do that than to commit to something? Sometimes, yes. Right now I’m doing a good job--I’m four days into the no-carb diet that worked for me at the end of summer. I’m struggling very much to go to the gym though. 

To summarize, being poor in America does make weight loss and staying healthy more difficult. I think next, I would like to take a look at what wealthy people are doing to stay fit. We’ve seen what disadvantages poor citizens have, but what advantages do rich citizens have?

[juliablogs30-blog]

Day Twenty-Seven

Alright, I’ve done some research about the opinions I had in my previous post. Before I get too far into it, I’d like to start it off with something that feels particularly strange about the research I have done--there is very little, if ANY, studies about social class and health that have been conducted in the US. Generally, if I was researching, google would give me US related articles first, and then other countries, but when I googled “social class and health,” the countries the results come in are as follows:

1) Australia

2) UK

3) Canada

4) UK

And then finally an American article. Hmmm.

Ladies and gentlemen, Lumin Learning describes it best: “Social class has a significant impact on one’s physical health, ability to receive adequate medical care and nutrition, and life expectancy.” They cite one main reason for this discrepancy as an unequal access to health care. This is worsened by the fact that, before access to health care, people in America with a lower socioeconomic status already tend to have more health problems. They work in more dangerous environments, they eat worse foods, and they have less access to adequate health care. Therefore, “they have higher rates of infant mortality, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and disabling physical injuries.” 

Something I’ve learned that I did not think about at all is as follows; in lower-income countries, the wealthier population is actually more obese than the lower-populations (which is the opposite of the US). This is cited by PBR as being because, “in lower-income countries, higher SES leads to consuming high-calorie food and avoiding physically tough tasks.” Being wealthy means something completely different in poorer countries than it does in the US, which makes a lot of sense. For the purposes of whatever comes after this blog, I am going to focus on the US.

I found many statistics that showed that people of a lower SES (socioeconomic status) are more obese than those that aren't. For example, “BMI was higher among individuals with lower life course SES compared with those with higher life course SES” (NCBI). 

At the end of the day, I found a lot of proof that people of a lower SES have a higher rate of obesity and other associated health problems. What I’m having trouble finding at the moment, however, is an explicit answer as to WHY.

[juliablogs30-blog]

Day Twenty-Six

Thus far since my last topics blog post, I’ve talked about anxiety/depression and health, cancerous everyday items, and then elaborated on my own anxiety, as I feel it is a topic that truly interested me and affects my life. I think I can rule out my topic of “medicine vs. side effects,” because I don’t really know how I would go about researching it. That leaves me with the aforementioned “social class & health.”

I am interested in this topic because 1) it affects me personally and 2) because of America’s absolutely brutal judgement of people who are obese and overweight. I can’t even tell you how many negative comments I’ve heard in person or seen online about people who are overweight, and it angers me because I feel like the people making these comments lack sympathy and understanding. As an incredibly sympathetic person, I try to get into the mind of  the people speaking this way; why might they be so cruel? The first thing that comes to mind for me is because they were raised in American culture. 

I would like to clarify that this is a true opinions piece before I continue--I will cite what I can, but a lot of what I have to say is a summation of my constant observations from being a born-and-raised American.

I feel that Americans are notoriously afraid of what is not familiar. What made Americans this way, I do not know, but from the age old fear of communism to illegal immigrants, I feel that we are very threatened by those who do not look like us and those things we don’t understand. It seems that, as the obesity epidemic became more and more prominent, and the negative way it affects health emerged, it became OK to bully the obese. Because, after all, maybe they need some sense knocked into them? Weight feels like something that can be changed about ourselves, and if we could change, why not do it?

While I think it is universally understood and laughed about that it’s hard to lose weight (just take one look at the Facebooks of modern moms) I think the causes of obesity are much more complicated than eating poorly. I know “fat” people who only eat salads and don’t gain (or lose) a pound. I know thin people who can eat three brownies a day and won’t gain a pound. And I know that, for my high school years, I was the latter--while I wasn’t thin, per se, I only gained about 5 pounds a year by not exercising and eating whatever I want. It was in college, when my metabolism slowed down, that I received a wake-up call, and found myself in a position that was very difficult to deal with.

I’ve talked about some of my other difficulties losing weight, but the one that I think is the least understood or talked about is how much more difficult it is to lose weight when you're part of a low social class.

This has become a long post, so I believe I will do some research and put that into the next post.

[juliablogs30-blog]

Day Twenty-Five

After researching about anxiety and mental illness yesterday, I went off on a personal venture. Considering that the nature of this blog is phenomenological, I decided that the unrelated facts I learned about anxiety still deserve a place in my consumption blog, considering anxiety is a part of myself that is involved in all of my consumption. I learn things about myself by telling other people or writing it down, so why not. I would like to revisit my consumption from the eyes of Generalized Anxiety Disorder.

Generalized Anxiety Disorder is characterized by a constant, unnecessary state of anxiety that is not caused by any one thing. It affects about 3.1% of the American population, but only 43.2% are currently receiving treatment (ADAA). This means that I am one of the 1.3% of the population that has received treatment for this disorder, and boy, do I feel lucky for it. Looking back on my life before my consumption of SSRIs (selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors), I truly have no idea how I lived. 

Increasingly as I research, I am discovering that there is a casual term for how I am as well: “high-functioning anxiety.” From my outspokenness in class and public speaking extracurriculars, unless I tell my peers, they have no ideaI have a problem. I discovered a poorly written article from Psychology Today that, despite seeming very casual, honest to god is a perfect description of my existence. 

It is especially difficult for people with high-functioning anxiety to get help. Arlin Cuncic states that, “we don't think of an internal struggle as being reason enough to seek help, no matter how much inner turmoil we experience. It is very much a life of denial.” That was my life for about five years.

How has this impacted my consumption? For one thing, I am certainly a stress-eater, and it likely has been the main cause of my weight gain throughout the years. Something I haven’t discussed yet on my blog is another thing that makes it difficult for me to be healthy: I am very concerned about the possibility of developing an eating disorder. My worry is not unfounded; the ADAA states that, “a 2004 study found that two-thirds of people with eating disorders suffer from an anxiety disorder at some point in their lives and that around 42 percent had developed an anxiety disorder during childhood, well before the onset of their eating disorder.” That could be me: childhood anxiety disorder leads to adulthood eating disorder. Beyond this statistic, I am familiar with myself and my habits, and I know that it is very easy for anxiety to be the captain of my ship. I have example after example of anxiety driving me to succeed where I had hoped, while simultaneously running me into the ground emotionally and physically. This was already unhealthy when it was about getting homework done--I can only imagine how bad it would be for me to let my anxiety drive me to the body I want. I have no doubt in my mind that I would get it; my anxiety disorder does not let me fail. But I would do anything it took to succeed, and that could get unhealthy or lead to an eating disorder. When I decided I was going to stop eating carbs, I switched so utterly and completely that I was somewhat alarmed. That led to the induction flu, which was horrible, and eventually me breaking the diet because my family made me at the Minnesota State Fair.

The good news is that knowing myself is an advantage, not a disadvantage. I need to keep an eye on myself as I become healthier. I have gone back onto the no-carb diet, but I absolutely must break my diet at least one day per week. That means I have to have a Taco Bell freezie or a piece of cancerous pepperoni pizza. Bon appétit, Julia.

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Day Twenty-Four

Today I decided to look a little more closely at the effects anxiety may have on one’s physical health. I realized that I try very deeply to understand and connect with other’s stories and information, and since this is something that I share with others, I would like to look into it a little.

Harvard Health states that “Anxiety has been implicated in several chronic physical illnesses, including heart disease, chronic respiratory disorders, and gastrointestinal conditions.” Basically, anxiety worsens many pre-existing disorders. It isn’t completely clear as to if they cause them completely, but they certainly worsen them, as anxiety causes a lot of strain on the body.

Also, people with chronic respiratory disease are very likely to also have panic attacks and or anxiety, and it is known to increase the risk of heart disease. According to the Nurse’s Health Study, “women with the highest levels of phobic anxiety were 59% more likely to have a heart attack, and 31% more likely to die from one.” This is very concerning to me, as I am very familiar with these symptoms.

[juliablogs30-blog]

Day Twenty-Three

Spring-boarding off of my list of four topics, I am looking into the effects of depression and anxiety on physical health today. I am starting to feel some of the anxiety creeping back that occurs when I start to get really bogged down with homework, and I’m feeling inspired by it.

According to Medical News Today, “depression can reduce a person's motivation to make positive lifestyle choices.” This includes choosing good foods, going to the gym, and wanting to improve yourself. 

I do not personally have a diagnosable form of depression, so I can’t truly know the intricacies of the disease, but I do have bouts of depression that convince my medical professional that I need to be on medication that treats both depression and anxiety. So I relate to this statement on a few levels. I find it really difficult to eat healthy when I feel low on dopamine, because I am searching desperately for little things that will help me feel better. This often means eating a lot of salt or sugar.

Medical News Today also reports that people with depression often report digestive system problems, insomnia, and are at a greater risk for heart disease. It appears that there is certainly some form of connection and intricacies between physical and mental illnesses.

[juliablogs30-blog]

COLLECTION, part 3

For this week’s collection, we have taboo modifiers that I am encountering in my life: hair dye, piercings, and tattoos. My friend wants me to design a tattoo for her, which I find really exciting. I am thinking about getting my nose pierced. I had my ears pierced a long time ago, and it was a mess, so I’m looking for a better location than Claire’s, and a different kind of piercing. Also, I’m thinking of dying my hair with box dye to bond with a friend.

[juliablogs30-blog]

Day Twenty-Two

I’m starting to get a little lost. I think I’m definitely getting to the point where I have a lot of different directions to take my research in for the next project, and I’m having a difficult time finding time to do some research for the posts. I think today would be another good day for me to list out my potential topics.

1) Common, surprising day to day things that cause cancer: this has been incredibly interesting to me recently. I could also look into cancer coverups by industries.

2) Class difference, and how that affects health: also very interested in this, but I don’t know how many more personal examples I need of it. I’ve given quite a few. It’s time to start researching this one and getting numbers.

3) Medication vs. side effect: how Americans choose whether their medicine is worth the side effects. This one I could elaborate more on story-wise as opposed to research.

4) Anxiety, depression, and heath: how these two mental disorders interfere with physical health. How do they affect exercising, food choices, attitude?

[juliablogs30-blog]

Day Twenty-One

Today, I came across a video on Facebook that seemed as though it was describing ways to be healthier. I can’t for the life of me find it again, but it was described as a health professional describing the worst foods to eat, the reasons dieting doesn't work, and how an unhealthy digestive tract can be to blame for gaining weight. The video was set up very well, and I watched it, very interested. The video was about 45 minutes long, and I was very interested to see what would become of all this information.

What came of it? Well, Dr. Amy Lee said that all the information that she told me was her life’s research, and she had partnered with a company to produce a pill (that’s NOT a diet pill!!!) for $100 per month that helped in every single way she described in the video!!! And, because she was nice and thought her pill would solve America’s obesity epidemic, she would give it to you for $49 (but keep the price drop a secret--I promise, I have good intentions)!!!

It was the single best marketing tactic I’ve ever seen. I really wish I could find the video, because for many, many people, I’m sure the tactic would have worked. It gave no indication that it was going to try to sell you a diet pill until the very end, she cited her sources, she gave examples of other people who agreed with her, and best of all, posted it to Facebook, a platform that is notorious for users falling for fake news and advertisements. 

Luckily, I did feel pretty suspicious from the beginning on only one concern: why would a medical professional give all their secrets away for free? For a half hour, that’s all she did, and I thought she really was just trying to curb America’s obesity epidemic. Until the pill came out, and I realized I had wasted a half hour. Some research told me that the pill, Biox4, wasn’t entirely useless, but that it was only likely to help if your digestive system was severely out of whack, and that it was in no way guaranteed to help curb your appetite or whatever the hell was advertised.

I found this incredibly frustrating, and I’m struggling to find research on the topic of health honestly. Many people have realized that insecurity turns a huge profit, and information, both good and completely phony, often need to be paid for before you can get educated on the subject. But I’m still looking. Wish me luck.

[juliablogs30-blog]

Day Twenty

The more I look into cancer, the more it seems that it is inescapable. I touched on formaldehyde in a previous post, a carcinogen that is produced naturally by humans and animals and is found in apples and pears. It seems easy to panic about consuming a carcinogen, but what if that carcinogen is also produced by you, and is a natural part of the world as nature created it?

Guess what else is a carcinogen? Estrogen. Estrogen is very necessary to the human body, especially in women, and yet it is known to cause cancer in excess. A woman’s risk of breast cancer is directly linked to the amount of estrogen and progesterone produced by her ovaries (National Cancer Institute). There is a lot of suspicion that birth control can increase the risk of certain types of cancer, however I am having a difficult time confirming or disproving this concern. 

I wonder if this is due to birth control companies suppressing information, general disinterest, or just societal taboo? I feel like this is something that could be very easily tested. On my old birth control information sheets, they used to state that there may be an increased chance of cancer, but there’s not enough research to support it. Why not?

[juliablogs30-blog]

Day Nineteen

I’ve continued to look into the day-to-day items that are potentially cancerous, and I came across another interesting topic: makeup and cancer. 

It turns out that drugs and cosmetics are both controlled by the FDA, but they have very different standards that must be met before they are approved. For drugs, the FDA requires that “new products be shown to be safe and effective before they are allowed to be sold” (American Cancer Society). However, for cosmetics, it is up to the companies themselves to test their products. If no testing has been done, a warning label must be put on the product. But even testing purely for skin irritation counts as “testing.” Most of the testing done for makeup only looks at very short term effects, not long term possibilities, like cancer. Overall, however, there is not enough data to confirm that any cosmetics do or do not cause cancer. However, many people do feel concerned about it.

A concern that people hold is the use of formaldehyde in cosmetics. Formaldehyde is a known carcinogen. However, the small doses of formaldehyde in cosmetics is argued not to be harmful: cosmeticsinfo.org says that formaldehyde is put into makeup products to prevent bacteria growth, and that the amount in the average product is similar to the amount that you would find in a medium-sized apple or pear..

Something cosmetic that has been highly suggested to cause cancer is hair dye. Also according to the American Cancer society, a meta-analysis of eight studies showed that individuals who started using hair dye before 1980 have a 30% increased change to develop non-Hodgkin lymphoma.  Luckily, changes were made to hair dyes around then, and after 1980 there is not evidence to support the link between hair dye and cancer. However, it is uncertain if this is due to hair dye’s safety or too short of an exposure time.

I’m finding this interesting because of cancer’s mystery. It is so, so widespread, and there is no concrete cure. Everyone wonders what is causing cancer, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised to find out that it has to do with some of the unnatural products in our world. 

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Day Eighteen

Something unusual that I consume that could be getting in the way of my health is a very common food: salami. I f*cking love salami and pepperoni, I really do. And it’s so easy to eat a sandwich and just throw some salami, cheese, lettuce or tomato into it and go. But...

According to the World Health Organization, there is “sufficient evidence from epidemiological studies that eating processed meat causes colorectal cancer.” Bacon, salami, ham... there is strong evidence that they cause cancer. Aside from that, it’s not even very healthy in the first place.

People my age think our parents were crazy for not wearing sunscreen and smoking cigarettes so much. Are my children going to think I was crazy for eating pepperoni pizza? Honestly, I think so. We as Americans are being told that eating this kind of meat does cause cancer. It DOES. There are 34,000 deaths worldwide every year that are caused by eating processed meat. The WHO cites that “an analysis of data from 10 studies estimated that every 50 gram portion of processed meat eaten daily increases the risk of colorectal cancer by about 18%.” 

Honest to goodness, we may be able to thank this blog for my lack of colorectal cancer in 20 years, because this is alarming. And believe me, I’m doing my research--there are very few things that would prompt me to give up my favorite foods. When I was a kid, I used to dream about “pepperoni heaven,” a world made out of only pepperoni. I love processed meat this much. I am not about to fall for some bizarre scare tactic. I have looked at the evidence, and unfortunately, it is compelling.

So, what else are we consuming that is directly related to cancer? Something that we sure do love in the Bold North: Alcohol is cited as being a known carcinogen by the National Toxicology Program of the US Department of Health and Human Services. 3.5% of cancer deaths in the United States are linked to cancer due to alcohol consumption.

Many other foods are being called carcinogens, but these are the two that I can confirm have the strongest arguments for their cancerous natures. This is INCREDIBLY interesting to me. More cancer research to come.

[juliablogs30-blog]

Day Seventeen

I took this series of awkward selfies to highlight my acne. That’s a sentence that probably hasn’t been written very often... who wants to see acne? Not very many people, myself included. I haven’t had acne in a very long time, because I had it under control for about a year and a half. However, while compiling my collection for this week, I remembered something I used to consume that got in the way of my health.

For a year and a half, I was on oral birth control, and I loved it. I took it for multiple reasons, including the implied reason. However, I also took it to have less periods (which are very difficult for me) and to reduce my very hormonal acne.

Sure, I could do a better job washing my face, but a main perpetrator of my acne is just hormonal imbalance. For whatever reason, I was born a little hormonally off, because hormone imbalance has been linked to both my acne and my anxiety. Well, lucky for me, hormones can be changed with medicine, so I started off attacking the acne issue by taking oral birth control.

When you begin oral birth control, you are told that you will likely have some negative side effects for the first month, especially nausea. I don’t remember feeling particularly nauseous, but I do remember feeling sore--I had a sore chest for probably three months. I should have gone to the doctor for that for sure, but out of pure neglect, I didn’t.

Eventually, that pain went away. However, I had developed something that, for whatever reason, I didn’t attribute to my birth control. I called this sickness “Monday Syndrome.” Every single Monday, I would get a horribly upset stomach during second period of high school. There was not a Monday it didn’t happen. Unfortunately, since it took multiple months after starting the medicine to start, I connected it to stress and anxiety levels instead of my birth control. Looking back on it, birth control was not the cause of Monday Syndrome, but it was part of the spider web of things that caused it. 

After high school, I didn’t have a set schedule, so Monday Syndrome was harder to track. I started getting an upset stomach after dinner fairly often. Then I would go a few weeks without incident, only to have a whole week of one upset stomach after another. 

Finally, I decided I needed to make sure that it wasn’t my birth control that was causing this. It was surprisingly hard to link the two, because I could barely remember what life was like off of it. I stopped taking my brith control, and lo and behold, I have only had one upset stomach since I stopped a month ago.

My peer review group has informed me that I “journal” too much, so I would like to make it abundantly clear why I am telling this story; my vein of research right now is looking at the things that get in the way of being healthy in America. Part of this journal is looking introspectively at our lives and exploring them, and I am looking at birth control and realizing that it got in the way of a healthy life for 1.5 years of my life. I wonder how many other women have a similar story? And how many women are now covered in acne because they had to choose between having a healthy stomach and a scar-free face? 

It seems to me that sometimes we have to choose which ways we want to be healthy and which ways we have to be unhealthy. My choice was this: do I want to deal with frequently (intense) upset stomachs, but have a 99.9% chance of staying child-free, have clear skin, and only have four difficult periods instead of twelve per year? Or, do I want the exact opposite? For me, the stomach pains were way, way worse. I’m interested what other exchanges like this are going on in the lives of Americans.

[juliablogs30-blog]

COLLECTION, part 2

This week, my collection of body modifiers are the drugs I use weekly: caffeine (coffee, tea), anxiety medicine (Escitalopram/Lexapro), and acetaminophen (Tylenol). I don’t get much caffeine from decaf coffee, but there is still small amounts of it in there. There’s a little more caffeine in my tea for times when I’m really struggling with energy, but not too much so that I have heart racing problems. I have coffee or tea about 6 days per week. 

I take my Escitalopram every night, and I have acetaminophen for headaches or other pain. Advil, or Ibuprofen, is more commonly used for this purpose, but Ibuprofen can interact negatively with my Escitalopram, and it used to interact with my oral birth control. I stopped taking that because, despite clearing my acne and making sure I’m not pregnant, the side effects were unbearable.