Questions and Answers - Health
Mental Health (8)
Depression is definitely a real illness although mental health experts agree that there is no single cause. There are several types of depression to include Major Depressive Disorder (very common), Post Partum Depression (occurs in women after childbirth), and Psychotic Depression (feelings of sadness accompanied with hallucinations and/or breaks with reality).
Everyone feels sad from time to time but if those feelings have not gone away after a few days you might want to examine other symptoms.
- Persistent sad, anxious or "empty" feelings
- Feelings of hopelessness and/or pessimism
- Feelings of guilt, worthlessness and/or helplessness
- Irritability, restlessness
ADD stands for attention deficit disorder and is often referred to as ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder). It is a biological brain condition very common among children and can continue unto adulthood. The primary symptoms are lack of focus, fidgeting, hyperactivity and poor impulse control. If a child has ADD it could affect how they function in school and or social interactions.
Everyone (including you and your children, wife or girlfriend) will have feelings of sadness at times during thier lives. There is no clear answer for when normal sadness can be diagnosed as clinical depression but these are some of the signs that a person may have a problem:
- loss of appetite
- excessive sleeping (sleeping all day, every day)
- significant weight loss and/or disinterest in eating
- feelings of guilt, worthlessness or helplessness
- irritability and/or restlessness
- talk of suicide
Psychiatrists are medical doctors and psychologists are not. Psychiatrists treat mental issues such as bipolar disorder and schizophrenia with medicine (i.e. pills). Psychologists use counseling and/or therapy to deal with mental health issues. The suffix "-iatry" means "medical treatment," and "-logy" means "science" or "theory." So psychiatry is the medical treatment of the psyche, and psychology is the science of the psyche.
Physical Health (0)
Grooming (5)
The origin of this fashion trend comes from the prison culture. Prisoners are not allowed to wear belts so their pants tend to sag. The look also indicates that the wearer belongs to another prisoner (sexually). The look is identified with thug-life and for many creates a negative stereotype. Note – “Saggin” spelled backwards is “Niggas”.
Before there were grills everyday people who needed dental work had their teeth pulled and replaced with gold teeth. Many black people opted for this option rather than spending lots of money for expensive dental repair and so gold teeth were prevalent in black communities. During the late 1980's gold teeth gained popularity and exposure as rappers like Flava Flav of Public Enemy and others began to show off their gold teeth (along with their gold chains, rings, etc.) as bling was the style of the time. Gold teeth quickly went from a dental solution to a fashion statement as more rappers included sets of false teeth in their gold and jewelry arsenal. After Nelly made the song "Grillz" in 2005, the rest was history.
Wellness (8)
This is a person in charge of carrying out your wishes stated in a living will in the event you become incapacitated and cannot speak or convey your wishes directly. For example, the healthcare proxy will be in charge of removing life support if you are in a hospital and in a permanent vegetative state.
A living will is a legal document and is sometimes known as an "advanced health care directive". It provides instructions as to your medical wishes should you ever become incapacitated and are unable to speak your wishes. You need to have this in place BEFORE the tube goes in, before you get shot, before alzheimers kicks in, etc. For more info on this topic, check out the upcoming article on "How to Create a Living Will - and Why" in the Health section of the Survival Guide.
A "potter's grave" is a place where people who don't have money for funeral services are buried. It is also reserved for people who have no loved ones to bury them or people who are unidentified at their time of death. A potter's field (where the graves are) is called so, not because it is owned by a potter, but rather because the land is barren and unable to grow crops, so it was only good for potters to dig up clay.
The prostate is a walnut sized sex gland located just beneath the bladder in males.
Of course any disease can affact any man on the planet, but some diseases and conditions disproportionately affect the black community. In some cases black men are more genetically pre-disposed to getting certain diseases (think pancreatic cancer). In other cases lifestyle in the black community plays a significant role in higher rates of disease among the black population (think AIDS).
Below are some of the diseases that have a higher rate of occurence in black men compared to the rest of the U.S. population.
AIDS
Diabetes
Pancreatic Cancer
Prostate Cancer
Obesity
Arthritis
We will be adding to this answer so stay tuned...
There are many local organizations and groups that can help you kick the smoking habit, but if you don't know where to start try calling the Smoker's Helpline at 1-800-No-Butts (1-800 662-8887)
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