And it goes on and on and on.

So some of you may know I got a pet micro pig over the week and one of the best things about her: she's allergy free due to the fact pigs have hair not fur. I think almost anyone can relate to the feelings of allergies. Mine are horrible and I live on allergy medicine year round. It's actually to the point that a few years ago I developed allergy induced asthma which is no fun especially since I'm allergic to the most random of things such as cold temperatures and rabbits. Of course me being an animal lover though I own a rabbit and could never give him up even though my doctor asked me too since he's had patients in the ER from similar situations. I wish there were some cure to these allergies but it just seems as though there's no end in sight. In the winter I have to make sure I'm extra bundled and I have to take Zyrtec D every night to prevent sinus infections. It can be dangerous though if not maintained. My allergy to the cold leads me to break out in hives and sends me into asthma attacks that are often painful and very scary if I don't have my inhaler around.
Now that I've complained a bit I thought I'd update everyone on my egg donation process. I'm scheduled to have them removed at the end of next week and the symptoms of taking my medications are starting to kick in. My Follistim is causing me to have feelings of pressure in my stomach and is making me not fit in my pants anymore. It's life though and the doctor warned me about that. As for the long term effects: there are none. Even though fertility drugs are more recent there have been studies done that show they do not cause any future fertility issues. I'll have an update next week once the process is over to let everyone know how it went.

The things college students will do for money.

So this week I decided to blog about something I've recently become familiar with. Egg donation. Yes, I know it sounds weird and almost everyone I talk to has a million questions about it. Last year in my genetics class it was brought up and the idea just stuck in my head. Not only is the compensation pretty sweet but the whole process absolutely fascinates me. So, me being the curious individual that I am I started looking into how I could become a donor. It wasn't too hard to find information about it. There's adds online and my mom actually even found one in the newspaper. I figured I'd give a call and see what the whole thing was all about. And now several months after that original call I'm several weeks into the donation process.
It's been an interesting journey so far. I had to have multiple tests done including a psych evaluation, which shocked all of my friends that I passed that step. It requires a lot of dedication to the process but so far I've had no bad side effects. I've had to give myself shots of a drug called Lupron every night for the past few weeks and over the weekend had to add another shot called Follistim to my regimen. I'm actually shocked that I've been able to do this considering I can barely prick my finger for blood. I think it's been easier for me to do this though because I know it's for a good cause. There is some woman out there who had hopes of one day having a child and whether it be chemotherapy or some other reason that chance was taken from her. Everyones first question is always: won't you be freaked out that you have a child out in the world? And my answer is always no because I don't see it that way. It may be my genetic information but I believe being a parent is much more than that. I won't be the one there for the child when it scrapes its knee or is learning to drive like my parents where there for me.
The process isn't complete yet but I'm sure there will be more of a bump in the road especially since everything is just starting to pick up. I only have a few more weeks left before it's all over but I have to say it seemed a lot more terrifying than it actually is. I'll keep this updated if anything else exciting or interesting happens during the rest of this. If anyone has any questions I'm open to them.

Totally awesome!

     So one of my closest friends sent me this link this past week and it is totally awesome. A woman had the whole tip of her pinky chopped off and refused to let anyone tell her no when she asked to have it put back on. First of all it's absolutely amazing that we now have enough research into stem cells that someone can dip their finger in some stem cell powder and the tip of it will grow back. Not only that but it was several weeks after the trauma happened that she actually got treatment and she was still able to recover. This is all too familiar of say an episode of Futurama but it's actually happening in 2010. Although it was just her pinky finger it's still a positive sign that there is a lot of potential in the studying of stem cells.
    The second thing I love the most about this article was this woman refused to hear no from her health care professionals. Working in the health field I see that the focus is becoming more on the quantity rather than the quality. In my pharmacy we're always being pushed to fill prescriptions as fast as possible like we're competing with McDonald's or some other fast food chain when the focus should be more on taking the time to actually review medications and be there for our patients when they most need us. This woman didn't stop until she convinced a doctor to take the time and actually look outside the box to save her pinky finger. I know most physicians are concerned with more than the cosmetic looks of a missing useless appendage but they should still be willing to listen to patients and help in whatever way is possible. After all, how else would we know about this amazing story unless her doctor went out on a limb and tried something new?

My first blog. Eek!

        It was rough trying to think of a health topic that I could actually speak on because I'm not a professional when it comes to anything health related especially considering one of my absolute favorite foods is a cheeseburger happy meal from McDonald's but here's my crack at it.  One thing I am a pro at though is sleeping. I could take a nap at any point of the day if I had the chance to but the problem is now that I'm a grown adult it's become increasingly difficult to find any time for sleep. I know they all say you should try and get at least 8 hours of sleep each night but where does a 23 year old biology student with bills to pay find the time? Trying to balance school, work, and attempting at a social life can take quite the toll on an individuals sleep schedule so how are we supposed to balance it all?

       I've found the best way to deal with it all is time management and prioritizing. If you don't your health certainly pays the price. I don't think I've ever had as many colds as when I started at USP and I think it directly coincides with the lack of sleep I've been getting ever since I started 4 and 1/2 years ago. I've read lack of sleep decreases your immune system and I'm sure I could be used as a lab rat to prove that statement. So my best advice for all you fellow work addicts out there: Find some time to yourself to get a good nights rest. After all nothing slows you down like a runny nose and achy body.