Some of the struggles were, before last week, unthinkable.
According to several news and reputable researchers that bias can even come from the physician when it comes to taking care of yourself if you are on the heavier end of the weight spectrum. Now, perhaps it is a social issue, a cultural trend that should change. After all, its not like weight is a symptom of potential other problems.
Cancer, something that in the United States have killed an estimated 609,640 people last year was the reason for this woman's weight issues. Cancer is complicated. News outlets report carcinogens and risk factors as soon as researchers release a study. For instance, the National Institute of Health's National Cancer Institute lists hormones as a potential carcinogen or risk factor for cancer. Hormones that, normally, people have no control over as they are created by the systems in the body, invisible to that individual until they are out of balance and cause a symptom. Weight gain can be a symptom. Appetite can be a symptom. These affects are what the doctor should be taking into account when it comes to the patient's well being. Being empathetic, being a caregiver is about being aware of the world outside your circle and listening to people instead of assuming based on a single glance.
I didn't learn about this by research, I actually heard about it through an adult comedy news show that I watch. It is a bit blunt and opinionated but I like hearing about stories with a lot of collected and compiled information so feel free to watch it, or don't.
Thicc not Sick | February 13, 2019 Act 2 | Full Frontal on TBS
I do not feel 100% today, maybe it is the weather, maybe I did not sleep well. It is not heartening to hear that people will look at my weight or appearance and make a judgement. That is why I like thinking about my Mom, give her a call and ask how she is. She is understanding and supportive. I say that because I want people to think twice about the relationship between health and weight, I want her to have a good doctor, somebody to care about her. Statistically speaking, I will probably end up with her issues when it comes to weight, I just hope somebody will listen to me.
Listening is indeed crucial, and for most of us harder than it sounds.
ReplyDeleteMy mother was a lovely woman who, sadly, struggled with weight and body-conscious issues her whole life - largely, I think, because her own parents and really the larger culture somehow instilled in her a sense that her self-worth was dependent upon maintaining a svelte appearance. She was never obese, but never seemed to be comfortable in her own skin. Perhaps there were medical-genetic factors in play, as well. And, a heightened sensitivity to weather. (On this point, I find it helpful always to recall that the sun is shining brightly somewhere, and we humans are fortunate in possessing the power to transport themselves imaginatively.)
Wouldn't it be nice if, in addition to actually listening, people (family members in particular) also learned to just accept and support one another?
Samantha Bee is hilarious.
William James Buffett: "...take the weather with you..."
DeleteWilliam James: "Remember when old December’s darkness is everywhere about you, that the world is really in every minutest point as full of life as in the most joyous morning you ever lived through; that the sun is whanging down, and the waves dancing, and the gulls skimming down at the mouth of the Amazon, for instance, as freshly as in the first morning of creation; and the hour is just as fit as any hour that ever was for a new gospel of cheer to be preached.
I am sure that one can, by merely thinking of these matters of fact, limit the power of one’s evil moods over one’s way of looking at the cosmos."
One more thing: those Valentine's Day scones were great!
DeleteOur society has large steps ahead of it when it comes to kindness as well as the relationship of weight and health. I do enjoy Samantha Bee, her stories are very in depth with good jokes on top of it. Your sympathy is appreciated. I am so relived that the flavors I chose went well together, thank you for the appreciation.
DeleteIt's crazy to think how much people get judged because of their weight when they might be exercising but are never able to lose any weight or because of an underlying medical condition. So often people are judged as being fat and it is disregarded as a symptom when it clearly is proven that there might be a bigger issue at hand. Why is it that if someone weighs more, the conclusion immediately drawn is that they're lazy, instead of sparking a medical question?
ReplyDeleteIt all comes down to bias, similar situations happen with birth control. I have to explain to my practitioner(one who is probably seeing me for the first time as we move every three years) why I do not want to loose two days to cramps. Endometriosis, a condition that may affect 11% of women 15 to 44 in the United States, is one of the least researched conditions in the Untied States.(https://www.womenshealth.gov/a-z-topics/endometriosis) For something that costs the US $18.8 to $22 billion in 2002, we know so little about it. (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3682634/) There is a lot of anxiety when it comes to asking for a diagnosis, I can only imagine the doctor's worry trying to help their patient. We should really look at the correlation between weight and other conditions, we might learn something.
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