Hot Doughnuts Now

I ate a free Krispy Kreme donut (or doughnut, as they spell it) today and immediately regretted it afterwards. It was too sweet, too sugary, and, worst of all, too unhealthy. I knew something was going to go down after my mom and sister said, 'Let's go to Krispy Kreme!' when the red neon 'Hot Doughnuts Now' sign was turned on.! It was that silly hat wearin', free donut givin' Krispy Kreme employee's fault; I declined, he insisted, and then it felt weird to decline again.

Sigh.

Oh Dear.

Yesterday, I woke up at six o'clock in the morning, ate breakfast half asleep, went back to bed, woke up again (this time on my own will), and starved for a good eight hours. I was fasting so I could have some serious blood work done. Yes, I'm well aware it's a lot easier to have dinner, go to bed, and have the test done early the next morning--that's what I normally do. However, someone--not me!--decided to do it differently this time.

Anyway, I picked up my results this afternoon and was disappointed to find out that despite all my dieting efforts my cholesterol has increased by a bit. My HDL cholesterol is high, which is a good thing, but so is my LDL cholesterol, which isn't a good thing. They do sort of balance each other out but that's besides the point.

*Sigh* I'll be seeing one or two doctors this coming week for my cholesterol.

(This will be the last 'Health' post in a while. I promise! Unless the doctors say something so amusing that I must share it.)

Hypochondria / Cyberchondria

I've been hearing a lot about hypochondria so I thought I would write about it. (You'll soon read why).

"Hypochondria -- the conviction that one is ill, despite all evidence to the contrary. ... Hypochondriacs don't just dwell on their disease, they act. They scour the Internet for information, earning some the moniker "cyberchondriacs.""
- WebMD

Hypochondria is an illness that has been known about for quite some time that has only been exacerbated by the advancements in the media. Although those suffering from hypochondria usually obtain the symptoms of their "illusive illnesses" from the internet, which is where the colloquial term 'cyberchondria' comes from, the internet shouldn't take all the blame. I think that in reality the other forms of media (and those behind it) are to blame.

All those ads you see both in print, online, and on the television about illnesses that thirty-, forty-, fifty-, and sixty-something year olds are prone to and what not are to blame. They just throw out a whole bunch of sicknesses in hopes of preventing those sicknesses (and profiting from it perhaps?) when in reality it just scares those people. Then those people start worrying--and believing--that they have all sorts of physical problems...

...When they actually have a mental problem.

I'll admit that I did have the tendency to research online when I felt like I was displaying "serious symptoms" of some random illness. I even went as far as getting one test done after some researching because I kept experiencing tingling sensations at the tips of my fingers and toes (amongst other things). Fortunately, and not surprisingly, the test came out negative. Since that experience I've given up on trying to find out if I have some sort of illness.

I'm better off concentrating on being my healthy self, or at least improving my cholesterol and finding better ways to deal with dysmenhorrea, instead of trying to convince myself that there's something wrong with me.

Edit: Oprah, courtesy of WebMD, tells me that because I'm still in my twenties my workout regime should be: "30 minutes of weight training followed by 30 minutes of cardio 3x a week, plus 45 to 60 minutes of straight cardio 3x a week. One day of rest." Ahk.