Mind-body connection

I'll be the first to admit that I'm a bit of a whiner, especially when it comes to aches and pains. But believe me, it's not because I want sympathy, I think it's more due to wanting advice or to talk about the different symptoms (my biggest regret in life right now is not giving medicine a shot... no pun intended). First of all, I've had back problems since the summer and I found out it's due to a protruding thoracic disc (not quite herniated, but probably will someday). Unfortunately, there's no real way to cure this, just practice appropriate pain management... and this REALLY annoys me. I end up talking about this a lot to people because it has never stopped aching for about 4 months now and therefore, it's always on my mind, and I'm hoping someone will have heard of some great therapy that will help it feel better. I like to talk about medical symptoms and cures and I guess I'm kind of a "pusher"... haha... because I like to play doctor. When someone has the first tinge of a sore throat, I offer them an Airborne. When someone says they have a runny nose, I inform them that Sudafed or other decongestant of choice is NOT what they want and instead, should use an anti-histamine to "dry things up". I just can't help myself. I wonder if I am a bit of a hypochondriac at times because I always seem to have something that needs a prescription of sorts (back, allergies, swollen lymph node on the right side of my throat, stuffy nose, bad scars, flat hair, bad habits, etc.)... I'm always looking for a cure for something that's nagging me. I'm trying to stop (an Rx for another bad habit?) and just see how these "ailments" pan out because it can't be healthy to constantly self-diagnose things.

Anyway, I didn't really have a point with all that, just more of what was on my mind. However, recently, I have had a new ailment that is really annoying and I think it's due to mainly stress and lack of sleep. This semester has just been HELL to say the least... I'm doing well... just SO much to do (don't get me started on goddamn group projects) that I haven't even had time to fold clothes properly after being washed. I've had clothes hanging on the rack for about a week now that I probably need to just throw in the wash again since they've been collecting dust. So anyway, this semester brought me an early class Monday through Friday which I like (I like being up early), however, it also means that going to bed around 3am and getting up at 6:30am every day is REALLY unhealthy. I have never felt more tired in my life and for once, I'm not actually going to blame myself for this one. I am busy until 6-7pm every night and by the time I get done making and eating dinner, it's 8pm and I'm just starting homework which I've consistently had a TON of. I just realized I'm whining again... but really, I've been going full speed since September and I don't really feel like I can help it. Anyway, long story short, getting a late start on homework causes a late bedtime with an early start everyday and I think it's affecting my health.

If I am particularly exhausted toward the end of a week, I start to have excruciating pain in my upper abdomen (right under my rib cage) that makes me double over for about 10 seconds, then 10 seconds of recovery, then 10 seconds of pain, and the cycle continues for about 5 minutes every half hour. Usually it happens when I'm really hungry, so then I eat something, and it happens again as soon as I've finished eating. Recently it's started to make me nauseous and I just have to lie down for about a half hour... where I end up falling asleep, only to wake up at 4 or 5am and realize I still have work to do before class. Ugh... I can't wait for this semester to be over! I've never felt pain like this before in my stomach and it's starting to worry me a bit but I think I'm going to wait another month to see what happens. I'm just coming to the end of a particularly busy and stressful few weeks so hopefully I can relax and get some good shut-eye so that I can fully assess the circumstances.

Anyway, the reason I always talk about "symptoms" is because I like to give my advice (I have a knack with medicine) and I ALWAYS like to receive advice and opinions, which does not include "oh poor Frannie, I hope she's okay". I look for someone who can help walk through the triggers and reasoning behind these things (I'm using medical symptoms as an example, but really, I'm talking about every other thing in life that you can discuss). I CRAVE advice and different viewpoints because I am anal about having a thoroughly-analyzed solution. I am a pretty open person if I've gotten to know you and a lot of times I end up with "word vomit" (to steal a phrase from Mean Girls) where it's a lot like going to the doctor, telling them every single little symptom so that they have a full understanding of what is ailing you so that they can give more adequate advice and come to a sound diagnosis. A lot of the things you told the doctor are unnecessary and you know it but you feel it could just be that little thing that makes the difference between a chest cold and pneumonia.

So basically what I'm trying to say is, if I'm having a discussion with you, it could be about the meaning of life or why puppies are just so darn cute, be honest with me and say what's on your mind, don't hide it behind, "yea... mmhmm... I think you're right... yea". I don't need to hear that I am right because more than likely, I have reservations about my thoughts and opinions and wouldn't be talking about it if I already thought I was 100% correct. I am very open to suggestion and very willing to change my mind if someone has an opinion or advice that makes more sense... I do this frequently because I like to reason and deduce what the best solution is and the best way to go about that is by researching all the different possibilities and outcomes.

Anyway, that was some major rambling and it really bugs me that it's quite grammatically incorrect all over the place... but stream of consciousness is how I roll.