Tonight I heard a wonderful woman speak, Dr. Ricki Pollycove. You can check her out at: http://www.drricki.com/
What struck me most was her comments on the importance of estrogen. She explained the statistics around hormone replacement therapy in a whole new way as in it probably is a good thing to do. Since I am on Arimidex I went up to her afterwards to ask about using a drug that cuts off my estrogen supply when she said it probably was not related to my cancer, and certainly is important. She said it gives me a 3% chance and since I am doing okay on it, and only have four more years, I should continue, but all of these "shoulds" that we are told by doctors should be questioned. She gave the names of people who can help with decisions around cancer treatment.
She also said to be aware around taking over the counter drugs. You don't know what is in the bottles or where they came from. She specifically mentioned Kava. She said drugs from other countries may be covered in pesticides and grown in polluted water. It was another argument for buying local and from people who you know.
Her emphasis is on quality of life. She heard the Dalai Lama speak and when he spoke of how we in the west see our little selves as separate from our divinity whereas those in the east see themselves as born into a divine universe, she "got" why many of us struggle so. She recommends subtle energy medicine. She also says, we should become "our own healthy mother," and "Live in the light of our own self-love." "Primary care is self-care."
She says we can influence our insurance companies. A few years back, the OB-GYN's wanted prenatal health care for all women. They handed out postcards for women to send in. Now, all women in CA are covered for prenatal health care.
