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User Info Medical Care And Medical Choices; entered at 2012-01-09 09:01:23
Psquared
Posts: 1899
Registered: 2008-10-11 SE USA
Congratulations Karl. It feels good to do this and I did it too. In January 2007 I weighed 207 and I am 5'10". My total cholesterol was 447. Over the next 12 months I lost 40 lbs and now weigh between 165-170. I've kept it off for 4 years with no trouble and I did this by diet and exercise.

I don't go to the doctor with every ailment and when I do go I am a careful consumer. I have actinic keratosis from too much sun as a young man. The best treatment I have found is flourouracil which is expensive. I called a few friends and family members got the name of a dermatologist that everyone liked. I called his office and spoke to his nurse. An office visit if I self-paid was $150 plus any treatment. I told her I need a few lesions frozen on my forehead and asked her if the doctor would give me the medicare rate. She said she would check and call me back. She called the next day and said he would see me and do any freezing needed for $130 total.

After the treatment I asked him about alternative treatments. He prescribed his own concoction using flourouracil. (5-FU) The branded cream is about $250 for 4 oz. The way he prescribed it cost me $30. Apparently if a real apothecary will use the ingredient in an off-branded cream it is much less expensive.

So what started as a potential $500 medical bill ended up costing me $160.

I also have periodic backpain - especially if I overdo the exercise. In another day I would have trotted down to the doctor and gotten an X-ray and paid several hundred bucks to be told what I already knew. Take an NSAID, get on a heating pad and take it easy for a few days. I know the difference between serious pain (chronic or acute) caused by joint or bone problems like arthritis and pain caused by a muscle sprain and I am not going to the doctor because my back hurts for a day or two.

I can name other ailments that at one time would have sent me to the doctor but now I treat myself.

Insomnia
colds, flu
Sinus, allergy problems
bowel problems

People have been trained to go to the doctor or the ER for every symptom however slight. If they would just educate themselves on common illnesses and home treatment, and take of their health by getting exercise and eating right we would reduce the demand on the healthcare system. Like everything else if the demand decreases the cost goes down.

That's my take anyway.

Last modified: 2012-01-09 09:05:27 by psquared

2012-01-09 09:01:23