Is there such a thing as too much medicine?
I believe the answer is yes. Emphatically.
There used to be a time when the medicine cabinet only held a few, reliable medicines, that could be used for a variety of ailments.
Nowadays, our medicine cabinet is bursting, and we have bottles, creams, lotions, and sprays being kept in multiple areas of the house.
It just feels like too much.
When I was a Little Girl…
Back in my day, (I use that phrase because it makes me feel old and wise), we ran an open cut under some water to rinse it out, padded it dry, and stuck a band-aid on it. That was that.
You didn’t have medicine for every little thing. You walked things off.
Getting hurt was a part of life and, if your arm wasn’t cut off, you didn’t cry about it.
We also had Grandma Rose. She lived directly across the road from us when I was a little girl. Sometimes it was a little too close.
If you were sick, she would either give you some of her cough medicine, which was mostly brandy mixed with a little bit of honey, or she would paint your throat with Merthiolate.
If you’ve never had your throat painted with Merthiolate, you are not missing out. It burned like crazy. Grandma not only used that stuff for sore throats, but also various cuts and scrapes.
You learned very quickly to not let Grandma Rose know if you had any ailments. It was best to take your chances with infection, fever, possible hospitalization.
It’s not that Grandma’s doctoring did not work, in most cases they did. It’s more that she didn’t really dish out any sympathy when applying whatever remedy she had.
There was no, “There, there, honey. You will feel better soon,” mentality.
It was more like, “Stop your whimpering. You can still walk around, can’t you?”
I miss her.
While on the subject of medicine, along with Grandma Rose, I should mention that Great Grandma Neeley, Grandma Rose’ mother, was known to use Listerine as her main medicine of choice.
She had a farm, along with a dozen kids or so. Anyway, it’s rumored that Listerine was used on any cuts or abrasions, for animals or humans, no matter the severity of the wounds.
From what I’ve heard with other family stories, I’m leaning towards believing the rumors.
Today’s Collection of Medication
I look in our medicine cupboard today, and I see every medicine imaginable within arms reach.
There’s Tylenol, Advil, children’s Tylenol, and off-brand ibuprofen and acetaminophen.
Next we have Allegra-D, Claritin-D, Zyrtec-D, and off-brand D.
If you still need help with congestion, we have Flonase and Nasonex.
If you are into the whole preventative thing, there’s Emergen-C, along with numerous other vitamins.
For any type of stomach concerns, we have Gas-X, Milk of Magnesia, and probably other various bowel movement medicines.
I can’t forget about the handful of different Neosporin tubes. (It’s one of Brian’s favorites.)
The list truly goes on and on. I haven’t even talked about the different creams and lotions for Poison Ivy, Pink-Eye, or ear medications.
It’s rather quite overwhelming.
Being Stubborn
I was sick the other day, very congested and had a nasty headache. Brian said he was bringing me a pill for congestion so that I could sleep well that night. I reluctantly agreed, although he told me I didn’t have a choice in the matter.
He brought me 3 pills – 1 white one and 2 blue pills.
“What is that?” I asked.
“It’s your medicine. Put your hand out.”
“What are the blue pills?” I asked suspiciously.
“Advil. Now take them.”
“Advil is brown. You’re just trying to get rid of me,” I answered. (I’m not a very good patient.)
“Take the pills. It’ll make you feel better.”
“No.”
I took the white congestion pill, downed it with some water, then stuck my head under the covers. After a few seconds, I peeked out just to see that Brian was still standing there, glowering at me, with his hand still holding 2 blue pills.
“Take them.”
“I don’t want to. Go away,” I replied, sticking my tongue out at him.
He eventually sighed, then left the room, muttering along the way about me being ridiculous.
He was just trying to take care of me, I know, and I was being stubborn.
I just hate medicine.
Undeniable Benefits to Various Medicines
While I truly hate the overflowing medicine cupboard, and I’d rather deal with a headache than resort to pills, I do see the benefits that go along with many medications.
I take Enbrel for my psoriasis. I don’t know where I’d be without it.
Then there’s Ozempic for my Type 2 Diabetes. My blood sugar levels have never been better.
I have used Taclonex for my skin. I’d be lost if I didn’t have it.
There’s just a part of me that wishes we could go back to a simpler time, where we didn’t rush for a medicated solution for every ache and ailment.
I can’t help but believe that if we are always quick to look for easy solutions, then our bodies will become accustomed to not having to fight through ailments.
Either way, I’m stocking Listerine, maybe some brandy, but I’ll forego the Merthiolate.
Too many bad memories with that one.
Goals for Today:
- Create Some Pinterest Pins
- Watch Basketball
- Go For a Walk