Murphy's Law

This past week has been "one of those weeks." You know the kind I'm talking about. There is an old saying that some call "Murphy's Law," it goes like this, "whatever can go wrong will go wrong." My husband was given a coffee cup with that detestable prophecy printed on it and I have always refused to drink willingly from that cup! But you know I think there are more people that believe that so called "law" than people who listen to, believe and obey the ten commandments! Most people feel that if anything can go wrong it will go wrong and it will go wrong at the worst possible time; when you least expect it! They just seem to accept it as a way of life and I am no different than anyone else. I used to fall into that same category. But really this is a negative, pessimistic view of life! I said that I used to think this way, but as I grow older my ideas and views of life have greatly changed, especially as I grow closer to my golden years and closer to the Lord. Through some of my life experiences, I have come to see this interpretation of Murphy's Law to be the wrong way of looking at it! Now, I see that having the understanding of Murphy's Law and how "whatever can go wrong will go wrong" is a principle of Forward Thinking...being prepared for any situation that comes your way - no matter what may happen! Always expect the unexpected...so to speak! Planning for future setbacks as well as future success should be a goal for us all as we travel on our journey to the land of health, wellness...and wealth.

But I must confess that I am one of those short sighted people who never planned for setbacks and loss like the stress of lay offs, heart attacks, strokes, bad knees, diabetes, miscarriages, arthritis, and finally the BIGGEST set back and surprise to me...a broken back!

Never...never, would I have ever believed that I would have broken my back! No one could have even forewarned me and made me believe them or take them seriously about taking care of my spine in case that one day I may be in a wheel chair due to a back injury. Who me? No way...well...yes way!

But when I worked at a local Home Improvement Company, I had the nickname, WONDER WOMAN. Daily I lifted 50 to 80 lb. bags of concrete, mulch, rock and topsoil without giving it a second thought. But now since my accident I realize how I have abused my body over the years and just how important it is to take care of the body that God has blessed us with. Especially what I call the "core four" essential parts of my physical body. What are the "core four?" They are my mind, my eyes, my heart, and my spine. Murphy's Law says, "what ever can go wrong will go wrong" now apply that saying to your body...scary thought, right? Every person needs to do some forward thinking and make plans to take care of his or her body.

Experts say that 8 out of 10 people will have back pain at some point in their lives that will be so severe that it will hamper all work or play in their lives. So how do we plan for "whatever can happen?" Well, I first suggest that you learn all that you can learn about your body and how to take care of it. Learn your strengths and weaknesses. Go to a GOOD REPUTABLE M.D. Go NOW! Don't wait until you are under physical pressure and pain. Don't wait for an illness to strike! If you wait, you may not have enough time to decide on the best place to get care.

My suggestion is to go to the American Medical Association's Web site and use the "DoctorFinder" service to find doctors who are local to you. You can find the site at: http://webapps.ama-assn.org/doctorfinder/html/patient.html Or give them a call at 800-621-8335.

Also check with your insurance provider...you do have health insurance don't you? If not please get some! Don't make the same mistakes I made! An HMO or a Personal Provider may have a list of Family Practice Physicians in your area. But even with a list of doctors you will still want to know who you can trust. Who is the best qualified to care for my health and/or my family's health? Well, when it comes right down to it you can't beat "word of mouth." Ask other doctors or hospital nurses for their recommendations. You can ask your pharmacist, dentist, eye doctor, family, friends, your pastor, coworkers and neighbors.

Do any doctors names keep coming up in the conversation as being favorable? Good! Make a list of all who come highly recommended, then call their office and talk to the receptionist or a member of the office staff. Ask questions and tell them your concerns. Is the doctor taking new patients? Let the office know that you are looking for a doctor you can rely on for a long trusting relationship. (I'd like to state here that I have a wonderful family physician that I have completely trusted now for nearly ten years!) Some offices may have brochures or Web sites to give you a better answer to your concerns.

Do a little digging and investigate a doctor's training, background, and quality of care - including a background check to see if a doctor has a history of legal or disciplinary actions that are currently pending. Look on this Web site: http://www.docboard.org/ for info on doctors in some states. Learn if a doctor is board certified. Being "board certified" means that the doctor has had three or more years of extra training after completion of medical school to become a specialist in a particular field of medicine. Family doctors who are board certified, must pass an exam every seven years to maintain their certification.

Here is MY advice to YOU. Ask yourself these questions:
1) Is this doctor easy to talk to?
2) Does he interrupt me before I've had the chance to explain my problems?
3) Does he treat me with respect?
4) Is he patient?
5) Does he encourage me to ask questions and does he listen to me with concern?
6) Does he show that he is truly interested in me as a person who has both physical health and emotional needs?

Then once you have asked yourself these questions and answered them, trust your own feelings when deciding but also remember to give the new physician - patient relationship time to develop. Your doctor is new to your case so let him get to know you also! But after a while if you still are not satisfied, do not feel bad about deciding to move on and continue your search for the right family doctor for you and your family.

You may wonder why I am so concerned about having the right family doctor. Well, I have had a series of misfortunate experiences with the "wrong doctors." These were experiences that I went through by not taking the responsibility of planning for my health and personal wellness as well as the wellness of my family. I suffered the loss of my first child who had already died in my womb and the doctor which I had continued to tell me the whole time (over a month) that the baby was still "doing just fine and her heartbeat was strong." The heartbeat he thought he was hearing was my own. I lost my baby on my birthday in Texas while I was visiting my sister. Then I was misdiagnosed by two doctors which resulted in having to go through cancer therapy for over four months. I was told that I had two different types of cancer so I thought that I may need to see a cancer specialist. I called the doctor who had initially told me over the phone that I had cancer and asked her to refer me to an oncologist. Her reaction surprised me. She hesitated and asked me to give her enough time to go back over my reports and records. She then told me that I did not need another doctor that she could handle all that I needed and I would most likely need a hysterectomy. She cut me off abruptly and told me that she didn't have time to talk to me if I had any more questions I could talk to her nurse. Red flags and rockets went off in my mind! Something was NOT right with this attitude! That was the second worst experience of my life and I after the cancer medication took it's toll on my body, I was left a diabetic and unable to give birth to any more children.
Since then, my husband and a friend of the family convinced me that I should go to a local chiropractor to see about the pain that I had in my lower back and legs after I had the lawn tractor flip over on top of me. That chiropractor took only one x-ray of my back while I was sitting in a ladder back chair with some pretty antiquated equipment and then proceeded with some "adjustments" until I screamed with pain and demanded that he stop! My husband almost had to carry me out of the office to the car. When we got home I had to go straight to bed and there my lower body just stopped moving! My pain was so intense that the only way I can describe it is that it felt that someone had ripped my skin off and set me on fire! Kirby called an ambulance and I was rushed to the hospital and admitted. After the "right doctor" ordered an MRI he could see that my back bone had been broken but amazingly was still in place. I know that the Lord was holding me together!

Please choose your doctors wisely! Remember Murphy's Law and change that negative "Law" into a positive by taking it seriously and doing some Forward Thinking! Take care of YOU and YOUR FAMILY! Plan for the worst and like a good scout, always be prepared!

May God Bless You In ALL Things!