Let Me Introduce You To My Little Friend...

I really should have told everyone about this long ago. It's certainly no secret that I enjoy my cocktails on pretty much a daily basis. Luckily, about 15 years ago my dear older brother-in-law introduced me to an herbal product called Milk Thistle Seed Extract drops with Yellow Dock. What this lovely little liquid does, is cleanse your liver on a daily basis. I am a living testament to its power. Every year I have to have a blood test for the doctor and every year he and his staff are in awe of my liver reading because it's so awesome.

Before I was introduced to this wonderful herb, my doctor wanted me to quit drinking because I had really bad liver readings. You do the math.

When I first started using the drops I kept smelling what seemed like a nasty mildew smell every time I went to the bathroom, which was totally gross. Then, I came to find out that it was all the toxins being flushed from my liver. After a while, the odor finally went away.

It isn't the only herbal support that I take. I have an herbalist who mixes up all kinds of combos to keep me in good health. My doctor still balks at my use of herbals rather than FDA approved pharmaceuticals, which he offers me samples of, for free. I almost never accept them unless they are for an infection of some kind, since herbs still can't cure infections. Otherwise, I prefer taking herbal remedies that aren't approved by the FDA. This is one area where the FDA & the government can't screw us, since they still have no control over this industry. Hmmm. That must be the reason they are still at reasonable prices.

I'm not saying that all herbal remedies are good, because they aren't; but I'm also saying that most of what the FDA approves is not all good either. If you doubt me, then just look at the possible side effects of your medications next time you get a refill. Most herbals don't have any side effects at all. Only the government would argue with that. Why? They'd argue with that because they don't get a cut. There are no lobbyists, or money changing hands under the table, or kick-backs from the herbal industry. Thank God. And I'm seriously only scratching the surface on this issue.

If the government has never had our best interests at heart regarding health issues, then why would you believe anything they approve is actually good for us? Hello! It's all about the Almighty Buck, people. It has nothing to do with whether they want to help you get beyond whatever illness. It's all about the diagnosis (money to the doctor), the prescription (money to the pharmeceutical companies), and the consumption (if you can afford it), which all feed money back into what I consider to be a failing industry. Health care. When people are homeless and dying on the streets due to an inability to qualify for health care, then we've got more serious problems than most citizens think. Insurance in this country has become an absolute joke and might quite possibly not be repairable.

When we have to pay ridiculously exorbitant prices for every aspect of health care in order to pay for indigent patients and THEIR drugs, which causes our health insurance payments to continually rise, then we've got some very serious problems indeed. I don't really see a cure on the horizon for what ails this industry, any more than I see a solution to the problem of the overcrowded courts system. I'd give anything to believe a new administration can cure these ills, but I know better. It's riddled with bureaucratic bullshit and there is not an easy solution, so don't be fooled into thinking there is.

When I found myself in the uncomfortable early stages of menopause, I chose to not do Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) for this very reason. Now that I'm post menopausal, I'm thoroughly happy that I went with herbal replacements. Have you ever read about all of the side effects caused by HRT? Pfft! Let them give it to the masses, but I'm never going there. I just happened to come through it smelling like a rose, against the advice of the drug companies and my GYN. What a surprise! I took Estroven religiously and it pretty much worked for me aside from the occasional hot flash, but I've always been hot-blooded anyway. Better to bear an occasional hot flash than die from the side effects of the drug approved by our government's FDA.

I take one FDA approved medication for my high blood pressure, which costs $50.00 for a 30 day supply. Our insurance pays for $10.00 of that, so I pay $40.00 per month. Not much of a break there. I also take migraine medicine that costs me $5.00 for a 30 day supply. Let's see here.... I could die without my high blood pressure pills (which must be why they cost so much). I could live without my migraine pills (which must be why they cost so little), although I'd have to live in pain. In my opinion, there is something very wrong with this picture.

And, in the words of Forest Gump.... "That's all I've got to say about that."