Bringing back some gothic romance to medicine

One of my favourite pastimes is learning about achieving good health through natural remedies.  I like working out what is wrong and then finding out what can be done food-or-herb wise to increase the postive health outcome likelihood.  Last Friday I got a blood test.  I went to see the locum doctor and explained about haemochromatosis and requested that, given it was 15 years since my last bloods specifically testing ferritin et al levels, I get tested.  Unfortunately, the locum seemed to know nothing about haemochromatosis, and didn't even seem to have much of a database to look up for more information.  If I'd known that I was going to be dictating which tests to ask for, I'd have looked them up and written them down before I went to the doctor.  So I later worked out that some tests are missing on the lab form, but hopefully what is ordered will tell us something useful (Who am I kidding?  Tell me something useful).  The doctor ordered some other tests when I commented on alcohol sensitivity (a most annoying thing I might add) and arthritis.

Up at the hospital laboratory, I asked the person collecting my blood what an ANA test was.  He explained that it was a measure of autoimmune disease.

Was I scared?  Did I start worrying about a new potential problem?  No way.  I walked back to work with an enthusiasm for researching this new word in the evening.

Tomorrow I get to collect the blood results.  I've not had blood results to play with since I got so enthusiastic about all this health home learning, but I'm expecting it to be fun working out what I can interpret from them.  Meanwhile, I've taken to drinking green tea for its iron chelating properties.  Of course, if my iron saturation levels are sufficiently high, then I'll have to have phlebotomy to lower it the medically advised way.  Phlebotomy is a fancy word for the time honoured medieval practice of bloodletting, almost completely out of vogue if it weren't for useful old haemochromatosis bringing back a bit of gothic romance to medicine.  I will concede that modern practices of bloodletting are a bit tame, involving a clean needle every time and not a leech in sight.

For tonight though, Favourite Handyman is the subject of my experimentation.  I've made garlic infused olive oil and massaged it into Brighid's feet when she has been laid down with a virus before and I think it helped. This time FH has a throat infection which is trying to go down into his chest, so I'm going to see what the antiviral and antibacterial properties of garlic delivered via foot massage can do for him.  More specifically, for his throat I will carry on making lemon, garlic and ginger drinks.

Comments

Anonymous said…
dose up that handyman with coconut oil too - it's what my man swears by whenever a sore throat threatens
~Rachael
June 12, 2012 at 8:08 PM
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