Gambling on Life: Unsolicited Healthcare Advice

This post, like others that will follow it, is a continuation of my Gambling On Life series.

I’ve had a very broken body for a very long time. I’m also an American, which means healthcare is expensive AF and not always accessible.

That means I’ve tried a lot of.. “alternative” treatments.

Something to keep in mind with alternative treatments is that the ones that actually work are not too far off from more traditional medicine.

As an example, I'm asthmatic. I know I can treat mild asthma issues with coffee, which acts as a poor person’s bronchodilator (and have done this treatment to some effect as recently as 2 years ago).

As someone who’s also had fun researching survivalist stuff, I know that some tree barks can be chewed on as a mild form of aspirin.

Note that, in both of these cases, the alternative treatment operates on similar principles to modern medical treatments, only.. Weaker.

Modern medicine is based on a lot of these “alternative” treatments, refined. Modern medicine strips away the unnecessary, inefficient or even downright harmful effects of these alternative treatments and distills them into something much more effective and practical.

I say all this to show you that I’m not someone who ignores “natural” medicine before you start harassing me for being a big pharma shill.

As someone who lives with chronic illness, I also deal with a lot of unsolicited medical advice.

Most recently an ex reached out to catch up. She knew me before my body really, REALLY went south, so when I mentioned my declining health and severe pain, she started pushing copper wraps as a miracle cure.. And refused to accept anything contrary to that.

Let me say this loud and clear: There is no scientific evidence that copper has ANY effect on arthritis or any other similar medical condition. It is pure snake-oil medicine that scams a lot of people out of hard earned money, and for the folks who claim it worked for them?

Well, most likely all you needed was a little compression and warmth, not copper, to get some relief.

I get a lot of unsolicited healthcare advice from folks who don’t know what it is like to live like my fellow spoonies. People who suggest drinking apple cider vinegar, crystals, turmeric and more.

You all need to learn that those of us who live like this have tried a LOT of wild things in order to find relief, and there is a reason we’re rolling our eyes at you.

You have no idea what the fuck you’re talking about.

So, before you offer unsolicited medical advice: You’re not my doctor, and if you don’t shut up I’m going to stab you with my last spoon.