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I finally watched one of the Democratic debates now that the number of candidates is down to a rational number. I know that I am going to be voting for one of these candidates, so I should know something about them. Up till now, I've been relying on reading their websites. I should explain something of my political journey. Until 2016, I was a Republican. Trump was what finally convinced me that it was time to leave the Republican party. Trump was not the only thing, though. I grew up as an evangelical, small-government, pro-life Republican. There was no question in my mind that I was going to vote Republican all the way down the ticket. Even getting a Bachelor's degree in Sociology wasn't e

I don't usually document my migraines here, but this one was so typical with all the migraine stages that I thought it could be useful to help some people understand what those of us with acute and chronic migraine deal with. My migraines are usually not as severe as this one because of my preventive medications. I also catch them sooner and treat them. I'm not sure why I missed this one. Yesterday was really a pretty good day. I slept well Wednesday night and woke up feeling OK. It was actually kind of surprising because I had a pretty bad headache when I went to bed Wednesday night because we had a snowstorm during the night, but I assumed I just slept off the headache. I went to a friend'

Ya'll, I'm worried. I'm anxious. This week just has me all worked up. Besides the fact that I keep trying to hack up a lung because I've got acute bronchitis, the events in the world and in my life are just overwhelming. * My mom and dad both have acute bronchitis and are sicker than I am. And older than I am. Just in case you were wondering. *The President was acquitted by the Senate of both charges on which he was impeached, despite the fact that numerous Senate Republicans admitted that he was guilty. * Rush Limbaugh got the Congressional Medal of Freedom. I just can't anymore. * The President gave a terrible speech at the National Prayer Breakfast and accused Nancy Pelosi of not praying

Jesus tells us that the greatest commandment is "‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’" Love isn't just a feeling. It's not just romance, flowers, chocolates, and kisses (not that those aren't nice). Love is action. Love is doing. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 13, "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always

Two things about abortion caught my eye today. The first one is that a Republican lawmaker in Michigan has proposed a bill that would require abortion providers in that state to provide women seeking abortions with information about "abortion reversal" in medication abortions. The second is a proposed bill in Florida that has been delayed in the Senate that would require that minors get parental consent for abortions. Let's look at these. And, remember, I'm generally pro-life, although I have great sympathy for the pro-choice arguments. The bill in Michigan is based on almost no science. A medical abortion occurs like this: a woman take mifepristone, an anti-progesterone medication, which bl

It was a hot day in summer in rural Mississippi. It's almost always hot in summer in rural Mississippi. We had come down from our home in Wisconsin to visit my Aunt Alma, my mom's next oldest sister. Aunt Alma was dying of lung cancer. It seemed completely unfair. Aunt Alma didn't have any of those bad habits that caused cancer! And she was relatively young, just in her 60s. How could this be? Didn't lung cancer happen to just smokers? No. Anyone can get cancer, without having a reason. Aunt Alma was sick because illness just happens to people. Rain falls on the just and the unjust (Matthew 5:45). Aunt Alma knew Jesus. She had gone to church since she was a little kid, but that's not why she

Until the chronic migraine took hold, I was very much an extrovert. I liked to be around people and I got energy from social settings. I was "outward facing". This wasn't a bad thing, for the most part. After all, I was a physician and my days were filled with interacting with other people. Was I born an extrovert or was I raised an extrovert? I don't know. I suspect that it was some of both. When I was very young, I was rather shy. My parents are both extroverts and it overwhelmed me when I was elementary school aged and younger. My the time I was in middle school, though, I developed a stronger personality and started to imitate their personality traits. Some of my extroversion was "baked

I have hit the wall. I have chronic fatigue from chronic migraine, a moderate migraine, extra fatigue from a busy week, and acute bronchitis. And I'm worried about my mom. I'm so done. Last week on Tuesday, my Aunt Chris developed severe pneumonia from which she would clearly not recover. I went down to Georgia to be with her and my mom. I was able to sit with Aunt Chris so Mom could rest and go see her doctor to get treated for acute bronchitis. Aunt Chris quietly passed from this life on Thursday evening with my mom sitting by her side. The rest of the week was spent making funeral and travel arrangements and getting the cat to the vet. We drove to Mississippi for the memorial service. On