Today's WEGO Health challenge assignment is: if you had a superpower, what would it be, and how would you use it?
If I had a superpower, it would be seeing into the future. I would use it to find out how much the medical establishment and pharmaceutical industries will change and (hopefully) grow over the next few decades. In particular, regarding fibromyalgia and chronic pain syndromes, but also cancer treatments, heart disease and improvement of invasive procedures such as the dreaded colonoscopy and removal of wisdom teeth!
Hopefully, years from now, people won't need to go through these awful procedures anymore. Things will be done with scanners and lasers. We are already moving in that direction!
As concerns chronic pain, right now we are just on the threshold of the medical establishment believing people when they say they are in constant pain, and not relying on "tests" since there is no test for chronic pain. I see a world where "the whole patient" is evaluated and not just "tests". As a person who has dealt with chronic pain since childhood, I have seen very little change in the last five decades when it comes to whether or not people, including doctors, teachers, parents, bosses, co-workers, friends, family, etc. (but mainly doctors!) believe you when you say you are in pain. If your arm isn't hanging off, bleeding, they simply don't believe you. This is difficult for a person who never lies. I did not realize I appear to others as dishonest. But I digress.
Within the last year, perhaps two, I have seen a slight change. The younger doctors are more receptive to discussing chronic pain and trying treatments and new drugs (if drugs are what you're into, I'm not). The older physicians are still having trouble with this, even when the Cymbalta rep is pounding on his door dropping of samples! They still want to rely on "tests". "All of your tests came back normal" they say (read between lines: "you can't possibly be in pain").
It is my hope that the future will bring more and more treatment of the whole person: mentally, physically spiritually, and a greater awareness of pain syndromes and belief systems. If I could see into the future, this is what I'd like to see. I wouldn't change anything if I could see into the future, I would just observe and take note.
If I had a superpower, it would be seeing into the future. I would use it to find out how much the medical establishment and pharmaceutical industries will change and (hopefully) grow over the next few decades. In particular, regarding fibromyalgia and chronic pain syndromes, but also cancer treatments, heart disease and improvement of invasive procedures such as the dreaded colonoscopy and removal of wisdom teeth!
Hopefully, years from now, people won't need to go through these awful procedures anymore. Things will be done with scanners and lasers. We are already moving in that direction!
As concerns chronic pain, right now we are just on the threshold of the medical establishment believing people when they say they are in constant pain, and not relying on "tests" since there is no test for chronic pain. I see a world where "the whole patient" is evaluated and not just "tests". As a person who has dealt with chronic pain since childhood, I have seen very little change in the last five decades when it comes to whether or not people, including doctors, teachers, parents, bosses, co-workers, friends, family, etc. (but mainly doctors!) believe you when you say you are in pain. If your arm isn't hanging off, bleeding, they simply don't believe you. This is difficult for a person who never lies. I did not realize I appear to others as dishonest. But I digress.
Within the last year, perhaps two, I have seen a slight change. The younger doctors are more receptive to discussing chronic pain and trying treatments and new drugs (if drugs are what you're into, I'm not). The older physicians are still having trouble with this, even when the Cymbalta rep is pounding on his door dropping of samples! They still want to rely on "tests". "All of your tests came back normal" they say (read between lines: "you can't possibly be in pain").
It is my hope that the future will bring more and more treatment of the whole person: mentally, physically spiritually, and a greater awareness of pain syndromes and belief systems. If I could see into the future, this is what I'd like to see. I wouldn't change anything if I could see into the future, I would just observe and take note.
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