My turn!
ADD - pretty much the driving factor in my life
Severe nearsightedness
Slight stutter
Arthritis
Low blood pressure and mild anemia
Nicotine addiction (that sounds so much more impressive than “smokes a lot”)
Ingrown toenails (two)
…and I’ve had my tonsils out THREE times!
Hmm… not too many (yet). Im only 18, though.
[ul]
[li]Nearsighted - 20/50 or so.[/li][li]Somewhat crappy skin, but that has gotten much better lately.[/li][/ul]
Geez, LifeOnWry! How the hell do you get your tonsils taken out three times? Did they grow back or something?
Megalomania - well, it’s sporadic.
mudcrutch, apparently, yes. I first had 'em removed when I was four, and then again at seven. The explanation given was that when one is very young, the tissues in the throat are pretty thin, and they didn’t want to cut too closely for fear of injuring other parts of me. So the tonsil tissue that was left became infected. I thought that was that, but earlier this year (at age 37) I developed an alarmingly sore throat and discovered I had a horrible abcess in my right tonsil! (So swollen it made my hangy-down-thingie point due east.) I guess they didn’t cut close enough the second time, either.
We seem to be one fucked-up bunch. I’ll join:
-Type One Diabetic
-Caffeine and Nicotine Addiction
-Mild Depression
-IBS
-Chronic Migraines
-Chronic Bronchitis
Nearsightedness
And ironically enough, the only other thing I suffer from is hypochodria, which just makes me think that I have everything else on this list. 
near sighted (20/400 or so)
skinny (not Marfam’s, I think; just skinny)
antisocial (maybe SAD, maybe I just don’t like people)
Caffeine freak (2 pots of coffee a day - this is addiction, I think)
That’s all that comes to mind, but I’ve not been to a doc in 18 years, so maybe there’s more I just haven’t noticed.
Very short-sighted in one eye, slight astigmatism but otherwise normal in the other (relates to a childhood accident - I have what looks like two pupils in my right eye); moderate depression, currently untreated because I’m coping okay; overweight; chronic insomnia; caffeine and nicotine addictions (you do not want to be around me when I’m off either of them, and it sounds like Kal and I shouldn’t be in the same room); weather-ache in left lower leg, the legacy of a couple of broken bones.
And does permanent crankiness count?
I’m relatively healthy except for:
Aside from intermittent acute depression, I’m in great shape compared to this crowd! (Although, I do need to wear reading glasses). I’ve never had a cavity (and I’m 46 years old!)
I have this thing where I get really lightheaded and then slowly everything starts to fade to black. Then most of the time I fall, but it doesn’t hurt at all because apparently I’m only like half-conscious so though I’m aware what’s going on I don’t feel anything. I’ve never seen a doctor about this although I probably should.
Anybody else have anything like this?
Also I have this place on my right shin that is like a knot that pops out when I run. Pain sort ofradiates from it. It started a little over a year ago but just started to hurt a few months ago.
I was getting a physical done so that I could participate on my high school’s cross country team and the doctor (not my usual one) said that I should get some blood work done when after taking my temperature I told him that around 100 is my normal temp, and he also noticed that my pulse was quite high for a runner.
I guess I should go see my doctor about all of this, but to be honest it kinda freaks me out.
Boy, just reading this thread makes me feel like taking a sick day…
Seasonal Allergies. This makes me laugh. Can’t think of a season I don’t have allergies. Must be a mysterious fifth season out there somewhere.
ADD. Or is it ADHD. I have trouble remembering.
Nearsighted. And not much. Just enough to make me miss an exit 'cause I couldn’t read the sign in time.
(TMI Alert) Nah, I’m not even going into the whole earwax thing.
Depression comes and goes. Started a year or so ago, but it’s a whole lot better now.
Asthma. Breathing is fun.
Had a malignant tumor removed from my face last year. Started out as a mole & decided to grow. Had to get rid of it when it began giving me it’s opinion on things & asking for the car keys.
Bad knees.
Had my fingertips whacked off when i was a wee tyke. The first and ring fingers on my left hand are 1/4" shorter than the other side.
That jaw thing where if you yawn to wide your jaw will kinda stick there. TMJ problems or something like that. I did have a nurse tell me once, “you have TMJ”. I replied with “don’t we all have that joint, ma’am?”
Ok, so I’m also a chronic smartass
It’s time for “Fun With Skin Afflictions”: I like to wear black shirts, therefore I use Nizoral. (guess the condition)
Oh, and let’s not forget Depression’s best friend, Insomnia.
Ok, all of a sudden I don’t feel too good. I’m going to go take a nap…if I can.
Hmm…how about a song?
I seem to have a lot of the same afflictions a lot of folks on this boad have:
I also FWIW, have flat feet.
It’s been a while since I’ve mentioned this, but since we’re all hanging out together, I may as well mention Cecil’s Place . It’s an on-line support group for Straight Dopers and other intelligent depressive types which I started up after a rather bruising encounter with my employer’s Employee Assistance Program. It’s not exactly active (OK, our last post was April 22nd), but it is out there still. Send me an e-mail if you’d like to join up.
CJ
“But I’m feeling much better now!”
oh heck, i’ll jump in (after you, cj!)
so HI all you other trichotillomaniacs! yeah, i have it too. i was never diagnosed with it, but for crying out loud, i KNOW i have it, because why else would i have pulled out my eyebrows in 6th grade and half the hair on my head in 7th and 8th grade?
i also have a mild case of tourette syndrome (diagnosed)
i’m kind of a hypochondriac and think i have social anxiety disorder, bipolar disorder, avoidant personality disorder, and probably a bunch of others.
i do NOT have flat feet (my arches are quite high), but my feet are size 2 and the big toe is shorter.
i had a bunch of ear infections as a child and teenager, i had salmonella at age 3, and i believe i had some sort of growth hormone deficiency that left me 4 foot 8 even though i got enough calcium.
i also don’t like freshly-baked chocolate chip cookies, which is probably a severe personality disorder
and shortly to be resolved, but something of an affliction at this late stage
-Nearsighted with astigmatism (plus very sensitive eyes so I can’t wear contacts)
-Cystic acne (fairly under control nowadays; I’ve given up trying to make it go away entirely)
-Subhorreic dermatitis (fancy dermatologyspeak for “really bad dandruff”)
-Inertia
-Criminally low self-esteem (might be depression, but have never been diagnosed by a professional)
-Lack of trust in others
As long as we’re all sharing the whys and wherefores of why we have these particular conditions, I’ll give it a go, at least in regards to my trichotillomania.
No, I was never diagnosed, but (similarly to agentfroot) I know I have it when I’m practically bald in ninth grade. Besides, the description I read of it a few years ago seems eerily familiar.
I think it started with some Gr. 7 science experiment involving looking at one strand of your hair under a microscope. For some reason, I found the sensation of pulling the hair out of my head very soothing. (hey, it’s a disorder of some sort; it’s allowed to be weird)
I wasn’t going through major stress at the time, but in Gr. 8, I started to (mainly because of my parents and stuff). So my reaction to stress? Pull out my hair! Yes, I know it’s not healthy. No matter what my parents tried to do to stop me, I couldn’t. (I remember one night having to sleep with my hands loosely tied with string so I wouldn’t do it… I don’t exactly do that in my sleep, you know!)
My parents always maintained that since I had no cause to be stressed out (“You don’t have any stress in your life, so you shouldn’t be pulling out your hair” – yeah right!), and since that wasn’t really a way to deal with anger, I shouldn’t be doing it. “So you hurt yourself when you get mad?” my mom asked once. Better than hurting YOU, I guess. “I know it’s not unconscious, since I see you looking at the hair after you pull it out, so there’s no excuse.” she told me another time. Did I say it was unconscious? No, I did not. I suppose that if it was an unconscious sort of thing, pulling out my own hair would be okay, and there would hence be no cause for concern. :rolleyes:
There are good times where I don’t pull it out as much as before, and the really bad times when I’m doing it with abandon. In Gr. 12 or so, it broadened into looking for split ends in my hair, and since I can’t abide them in my hair, I’ll take them right out! A few years after that, I began to use scissors to cut my own hair, checking for knots, split ends, etc. Sometimes I’ll manage to stop myself, and other times I won’t.
As a result of all this, I have this sort of thin head of hair. My sister, by contrast, has a LOT of thick hair on her head. so my grandma once commented that she should give some of her hair to me. Yeah whatever! Yes, sometimes I wish i had a full, thick head of hair, but that’s not the case. There is something I can probably do about it, I know… oh well. Right now, the situation is okay, I guess.
Oh, and as for some of my other afflictions? My poor eyesight, limp, and cerebral palsy could be most likely due to my premature birth. I was at least 9 or 10 weeks premature, and weighed 2 pounds, 2 ounces when I was born. My cerebral palsy isn’t severe, but just there enough. (my limp, lack of fine motor skills, etc.)
F_X