This past weekend, a family member of a friend suffered fatal accidental O.D. This was the third close family member of a friend to have passed in this manner in the past twelve months. I learned of this most recent trajedy the day after reading in this week’s New Yorker magazine about far more people suffer from various effects of prescription medications in this country than from effects of illegal substances. And the CDC says the odds are 115% greater in the American South. Many reported fatalities seemed to occur after the victim sought greater relief from physical pain.
WHY DO WE HURT SO MUCH IN THE SOUTH?
All of the above brought on a weekend of anxious pacing up and down, repeating mantras a lot, then gradual settling into: “Hey, you white-haired one, you have learned a lot about preventing pain, living healthier and more joyously; and you have learned a lot of postive ways in which to share this wisdom over the last few years. So rejoice, and get out there and SHARE!”
WHY DO WE HURT SO MUCH IN THE SOUTH?
Could it be that sharing one’s aches and pains and medical problems in socially acceptable here, sometimes the only social connection available other than the weather and college football? I totally believe that the more we talk about our pain, the more we hurt! The Zen folks, and the Coptic Christians, and Native Americans in sweat lodges are really onto something, I have found.
BUT—–WHY IS PAIN A SOCIALLY ACCEPTABLE TOPIC OF CONVERSATION IN THE SOUTH, especially in small towns? Do we Bible Belt folks think we are SUPPOSED to “suffer”? Is it because we think everyone else hurts, too?
Well, I am here to tell you, at near-65, I “hurt” a lot less than I did at 25! And the CDC statistics back this up, that the age group greatest at risk for death-caused-by-chasing-more-and-more pain relief is 15-24.
Guess what? Eating raw, fresh hot peppers, Yoga, soaking up the sun in limited sessions, singing, dancing, worshipping, saying “thank you” for every little ol’ pea-pickin’ thing, drinking lots of water, etc., etc.–you get the idea–prevents a LOT of physical pain. All of these preventive items are MUCH more worthy of discussion than, “oh, poor me, my knees/back/feet/hips/shoulder,etc. hurt so much; I’d better go back to the doctor for a different prescription!!!
NOT–NOT–NOT!!!
And you know what? My white hair hurts not one little bit!
(See how using senior wisdom rechanneled that weekend angst?)
granbee 