Women, what could those symptoms really mean?

[Sarah]

As you can probably imagine, I read a lot of women's health studies, a lot of news about women's health, and even more general health news. Within the past few weeks, I have noticed a pattern of articles that I'd like to attribute to me paying attention to the media's blow-up of the H1N1 (swine flu) virus: most people (men especially) aren't going to the doctor enough. Once I started noticing the pattern, I started doing more research and found out that I'm not just imagining the phenomenon.

I spent a long time taking apart a study (done by RD Neal and Philip L Heywood from the Centre for Research in Primary Care, Nuffield Institute of Health, University of Leeds) about Why people go to the doctor? Sex differences in the correlates of GP consultation which, doesn't stratify the differences between men and women but does give a thorough (and ultimately complex) explanation of why some people are "frequent attenders" at the doctor's office.

Men seem to look at visiting the physician as a luxury - a pampering event - while women are sometimes more proactive with their visits. There are still times, however, when women specifically aren't being seen enough. I read What women's symptoms really mean, an article written by Kimberly Holland (of Health.com) talking about symptoms of health problems that aren't normally connected.

Did you know having cracked lips could mean you have a yeast infection? "We all carry yeast on our skin," says Dr. Shawn Allen, a Boulder, Colorado, dermatologist, however, cracks around the edges of your mouth may mean your body has too much and you need to find a solution. What can you do? Stop licking your lips: saliva moistens the lips for a short time but that moisture encourages the growth of yeast. The real reason your lips are dry? You're dehydrated. Have a glass of water and be sure you're drinking enough throughout the day. Water is essential nutrient in your life. If drinking water doesn't prevent your lips from cracking, you can try a moisturizing barrier like ChapStick or Vaseline. If that doesn't work, contact your dermatologist.

Are you having shoulder or torso pain? You could have gallstones! (What are gallstones?) Stabbing pains in your right shoulder might be considered heartburn or even a heart attack at first, but you could quite possibly be dealing with painful gallstones. Women are twice as likely to develop gallstones as men because of estrogen levels in our bodies; the "hormone increases the concentration of cholesterol in the gallbladder and decreases the organ's ability to do its job. Some women try to treat the pain with acid-blocking drugs, which won't work because heartburn isn't the problem. "Acid has nothing to do with the gallbladder," says Dr. Joel Levine, professor of medicine in gastroenterology at the University of Colorado Denver School of Medicine. What can you do? Change your diet just slightly; stop eating as much meat, cut out those French fries and avoid extra cholesterol (there is a clear gallstone::cholesterol connection). Try eating more low-fat, high-fiber foods (shouldn't we all do this anyway?) and get a little bit of exercise to avoid obesity.

While brushing your teeth do you notice you have neon-pink gums? You could be clenching your teeth! If your gums are a pale pink, you have nothing to worry about - that's a sign of good gum health, however, if they're bright pink or red, that's not good. Irritation and swelling may discolor your gums and may be a direct result of clenching your teeth (at night or during the stressful moments of your day). What can you do? Invest in a dental mouth guard. Sometimes this helps patients with gum irritation as much as brushing and flossing does. Talking to your dentist will probably give you the best personalized results for gum redness, however.

Does the ball of your foot burn? You might have Morton's neuroma! Morton's neuroma is a thickening of the nerves in your foot - normally between your third and fourth toes. At first it feels like you're walking on stone but may turn itself into a jabbing sensation if you leave it untreated. Women who wear high heels and women with high arches are more prone to getting Morton's neuroma says Marlene Reid, a Naperville, IL podiatrist. What can you do? Get new shoes. Foot pain is never normal. It can be quenched with the correct pair of shoes or insoles. A lower heel with a wider toe box may prevent foot pain while wearing heels, cortisone shots may reduce the swelling of nerve tissue, but there are other situations where surgery is required.

Are your thighs tingly? Your jeans may be too small! Seriously - your jeans might be a size too small and pressing on the lateral femoral cutaneous nerve which runs the outside of your thigh. On top of this, are you wearing high heels? They "throw your pelvis forward" (sounds like a bad dance move, eh?) which compresses that nerve even more. What can you do? Buy bigger pants. If you have a little weight to lose, that may also take the pressure off as your pants won't be as tight. If you have to go with the super-skinny-jean fad, the recommendation is that you buy leggings disguised as skinny jeans or stretchy jeans with a little spandex in them. (My opinion? Stay away from the skinny-jeans!)

Read More:

A great community discussion on why women don't visit the doctor as often as they "should"

Why are men so bashful about seeing the doctor? A video with some soapbox opinions!

When booking a doctor's visit, gender plays a role - when are men more likely to see the physician? When are women? When are you?

Have you ever had any of these symptoms? Will you think twice about putting your feet in pain or squeezing into fadtastic jeans just to look good after learning about them? What other symptoms have you ignored in your day-to-day life?

How can we encourage those around us (men included) to visit the doctor when they're not feeling quite right? Will you take your own advice and go?

[Sarah]

Crystal, I hate thinking that I'm being a hypochondriac when I notice that something is wrong with my body, but like we've been discussing, we know our bodies better than anyone else, and if we notice that something is wrong, we are most likely right and know that something is wrong. Kidney infections are nothing to trifle with, so if you ever see symptoms like those again, don't hesitate to be checked out!

[Sarah]

AmyK, you're so right on Ellen's awesome follow-up! I have added "referred pain" to my list of topics for more research now (yay for Evernote!) in hopes of learning some more to add to this blog entry! Symptoms that aren't "normal" are probably something to always be aware of - our bodies have very few ways of speaking to us besides the things that pop up.

Like Ellen and I were talking about, knowing our bodies is an important thing in realizing what's normal and what's not - for us. Everyone has different symptoms for everyday conditions, and sometimes the symptoms can vary between woman to woman and especially from women to men. (Women's heart attack symptoms - the same as mens?) I'm glad to hear that your chest pain wasn't "serious" and hopefully it has subsided with treatment!

[Sarah]

Ellen, thanks for the compliment! Sounds like your Hubs is a "regular" guy when it comes to going to the doctor, but I'm glad that you have a plan worked out with him and love the yearly prostate exam birthday present idea. If I ever have a problem with my husband in the future, I'll probably try to pull something like that. :) I know that I mother-hen my friends and so I volunteer to go with them to the doctor when they are having a troublesome procedure, and I'm more than willing to encourage them to have things checked out. You can't really be too safe.

Ignorance is bliss, until you learn that it can cause harm. With most issues, the sooner you catch them, the easier they are to treat - we as Health Activists know this, but a lot of patients struggle with that idea; you're so very right. I love the idea that you have maintenance done on your car and homes to keep them in tip top shape, why shouldn't we do that with our own bodies? Totally makes sense!

I should really start practicing what I preach - we both sound like we need to - waiting until we can barely get into the doctor on our own accord and all. ;) I haven't seen a doctor since I moved to the Bay area and have been holding off, honestly, until I have health insurance again. I know I need to be seen for a couple of things that are bothering me, but in this economic depression, money is tight for everyone and the recession is definitely taking a toll on how health care monies are being spent by patients. (See: Economic Recession Puts Strain On U.S. Health Care Safety Net for further proof.)

While I "ignore" strange symptoms, I do notice them. I know that if they get too weird or too strong, I'll take myself to be seen, but I also know that I push things out too far sometimes - which can't be the best way of taking care of myself. "I've learned that I know my body than anyone else," stands true for me, too. I think that's how a lot of people with chronic illnesses feel - I know what's normal and abnormal for my body and feel like I'm a pretty good judge of when I should seek treatment - most of the time.

Thanks for the information on cracked/dry lips Sjögren’s Syndrome. (For further reading on Sjögren’s Syndrome, I recommend checking out a very thorough Sjögren’s Syndrome Resource page.) I had never heard of exfoliative cheilitis before your comment either, and of course I had to go check that out, as well. For reading about this dry- & cracking-lip condition, I recommend the Exfoliative Cheilitis Blog.

Thanks for all the new information!

[Crystal R.]

I feel like I have the opposite problem sometimes...I'm hyper aware of everything going on with my body and I have trouble figuring out if it's a medical problem or not. I have definitely NOT erred on the side of caution in the past and ended up with a kidney infection. Still, sometimes it's hard to know where that line is...

[Amy K]

Awesome post and fabulous follow-up by Ellen, too! I am always amazed by the concept of "referred pain" and how our body can be so complex that it will sometimes indicate a problem in an area seemingly unrelated to the spot that is actually in trouble. All symptoms can be important to be aware of, aren't they?

Recently, I went to the doctor for chest pain. I was having it for quite some time and it was disturbing and uncomfortable. I was doubtful that it had anything to do with my heart...but I wanted to make sure everything was alright. Turns out, I spent a lot of money to end up discovering that I was likely experiencing "heartburn" or some kind of reflux...the good news, if anything else would have been going on, it would have been quickly addressed. I know my body and my normal aches and pains as a person living with Fibromyalgia and I knew that the chest pains were not normal for me. I am glad I listened to my body, even if it turned out to be nothing "serious".
My husband, on the other hand, avoids the doctor at all costs. Granted, we both are guilty of putting off some of our normal "check-up's" due to our health insurance situation, but he has some health concerns that need addressing (in my opinion) and he refuses to take the time and spend the money on it. I guess that goes along well with Sarah's mention of how men may view seeing the doctor as a luxury.
Thanks for all of the wonderful information and a great topic!

[Ellen S]

Fabulous post! So timely too - I finally got hubs to the doctor (GP) yesterday. Oh yes, he was kicking and screaming the whole way, but he finally went - after 6 years.

It's true, I am not above treating any member of my family however necessary, for however long is necessary, to be sure they get in. Some serious health issues have been caught early as a result! I've made appointments for them, picked them up at work and driven them in, sat with them thru examinations, written down questions and dialog for them to bring into the office, written lists, used bribery and assigned consequences. The best one so far? Asking for them to see the doctor as a birthday gift to me. I think I'm the only woman I know who gets a yearly prostate exam for her birthday!

My hubs doesn't like to go to the doctor because, he admits he's afraid of his family history, and ignorance is bliss. I find myself often reminding my family and others that, the tests a doctor often runs don't necessarily mean he/she thinks the worst, but that more often than not you want him to see you and rule out the bad stuff. Certain screens are important too. You have maintenance done on your car and your homes, why should your body be different? I write a little more about this in Amanda's blog post Do Cancer Screenings Help or Hurt Us? What Have You Heard?

For myself, I tend to wait until I can barely get myself in the office door - probably not the best example to set. On the other hand, as a patient with chronic illness, I see quite a few docs fairly frequently anyway.

Have I had strange symptoms? Yes. Do I ignore them? Sometimes. If it goes on more than 1 or 2 weeks I let a doctor know. If everything turns out okay, then I learn to live with it. I still am mindful of changes, and if something seems different, I let somebody know about it. If I get the all clear and it doesn't seem "quite right", I've learned that I know my body better than anyone else and sometimes that means I have to pursue things a bit harder. So far it's all turned out. I've never pursued anything on my own that didn't end up being 'something'. This is what I try to stress to members of the communities to which I belong - patient involvement.

One last thing to add - cracked/dry lips can also indicate the need for further testing. It's more common to have yeast, but if treatment doesn't work and cracked/dry lips persists, you may need to be evaluated for autoimmune disease - especially Sjogren's Disease, vitamin deficiency, allergies or heavy metal toxicity. Another common cause are medications that can cause dryness. Another strange syndrome is exfoliative cheilitis. Petroleum products can be ineffective or harmful if you have some of these conditions, so proper diagnosis can be important. This is an instance where a small problem may indicate something amiss elsewhere.