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Self-Care Is Often the Right Care
You feel like an out-of-control downhill ski racer: arms flailing wildly through the air, ski tips pointed east and west, blizzard-force snow flying in your face, each mogul knocking a bit more wind from your lungs. But, no, it's only life. Suddenly, you smell the sweet, hot cocoa in the chalet. Salvation! It's time for spring break and you have no commitments for 10 whole days. Just then, you and your entire family are knocked flat by the flu.
In the "old days" of $10 copayments, you might have bundled everyone up and headed for the doctor's office to hear the diagnosis and treatment recommendations (you knew in the first place): "You have the flu! Rest, drink lots of fluids, and call me if you're not better in a week." In the new environment, where each person is being asked to become more responsible for personal health care spending, you might opt to take your own best advice in the first place, saving you (and your employer and your insurer) the cost of multiple office visits, and allowing your doctor to focus on patients truly in need of medical help. It's not always easy to know when to seek medical attention. And it's important to keep in mind that infants and young children, older adults, people with chronic diseases, and people who are receiving chemotherapy or radiation treatments for cancer are likely to need care sooner than others who are healthy. But in general, it's wise to trust your instincts and experience and to make thoughtful decisions about the care you and your family need, rather than running for expensive consultations you don't really need.
Here's some basic troubleshooting advice:
- In a true emergency (or suspected emergency), call 9-1-1 without hesitation. (A possible heart attack or stroke; poisoning; seizures; signs of a severe allergic reaction; broken bones; serious bleeding; head, spinal cord or eye injuries; and severe burns are a few good examples.)
- If you're not sure what to do, call the doctor. If it's after office hours, talk to the doctor or nurse on call. If you have a suspected sprain or strain, follow the instructions called P.R.I.C.E. from the Mayo Clinic:
- Protect the injured limb from further injury by not using the joint. You can do this using anything from splints to crutches.
- Rest the injured limb. But don't avoid all activity. Even with an ankle sprain, you can usually still exercise other muscles to prevent deconditioning. For example, you can use an exercise bicycle, working both your arms and the uninjured leg while resting the injured ankle on the bike peg. That way you still get three-limb exercise to keep up your cardiovascular conditioning.
- Ice the area. Using a cold pack, a slush bath, or a compression sleeve filled with cold water all limit swelling after an injury. Try to apply ice as soon as possible after the injury. If you use ice, be careful not to use it for too long as this could cause tissue damage.
- Compress the area with an elastic wrap or bandage. Compressive wraps or sleeves made of elastic or neoprene are best.
- Elevate the injured limb whenever possible to help prevent or limit swelling.
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What's in Your Home First-Aid Kit?
Every home should have a good first-aid kit that is stored in an obvious place known by every family member and by baby-sitters and other caregivers. Recommended items include:
- Special medical items for family members with severe allergies, diabetes, asthma or other medical problems. Ask your doctor what you should include.
- Acetaminophen and ibuprofen for headaches, pain, fever or simple sprains
- Aspirin for headaches, pain, fever or simple sprains. In case of suspected heart attack or stroke, you may be advised to give a tablet to the patient. Note that aspirin should never be given to children under age 18 because of its link to the potentially fatal Reye's syndrome.
- Anti-itch cream for bug bites and other minor skin irritations
- Antihistamine for mild allergic reactions to insect bites or to relieve common-cold symptoms
- Ipecac syrup to induce vomiting. This should be used only on the advice of a poison control specialist, doctor, or emergency room personnel.
- Roll of absorbent cotton for padding with a splint or to stop bleeding
- Instant-acting chemical cold packs for high fevers, sprains and bruises
- Elastic wraps with a Velcro® closure for wrist, ankle, elbow or knee injuries
- Triangular bandages to use as wraps or slings
- Assorted sizes of adhesive bandages for minor cuts and scrapes
- Antibiotic ointment for minor burns, cuts, scraps, blisters and other small wounds
- Sterile gauze bandages and pads to dress wounds
- White adhesive tape to hold dressings in place
- Disposable forehead thermometers to check on body temperature
- Scissors to cut bandages and tape to size
- Tweezers for splinter removal
- Safety pins to pin splints, bandages or slings
- Isotonic eye wash and eye cup to rinse small particles from eyes
- Flashlight with extra batteries
- First-aid manual
- Phone numbers for poison control, your doctor, and after-hours urgent care
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The BRAT Diet
The BRAT diet is a diet many physicians and nurses recommend for children recovering from gastrointestinal upsets, particularly diarrhea. BRAT stands for the different components that make up the diet: bananas, rice cereal, applesauce, toast. These foods are bland and are usually easy to eat while experiencing the symptoms mentioned above.
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What is the Difference between the Cold and the Flu?
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the flu and the common cold are both respiratory illnesses but they are caused by different viruses. Because these two types of illnesses have similar flu-like symptoms, it can be difficult to tell the difference between them based on symptoms alone. In general, the flu is worse than the common cold, and symptoms such as fever, body aches, extreme tiredness, and dry cough are more common and intense. Colds are usually milder than the flu. People with colds are more likely to have a runny or stuffy nose. Colds generally do not result in serious health problems such as pneumonia, bacterial infections, or hospitalizations.
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Sources: American College of Emergency Room Physicians; www.Mayoclinic.com; University of Virginia Health System
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