ASK NINA: GORDITA'S FRIEND

ASK NINA: GORDITA'S FRIEND

By: JJosepha News

Twitter.com/JJosephaNews

[Translated from Papiamentu to English]

Hello, Nina! How are you?

I need your advice on a very serious situation. It's life or death!

I have a friend, who has always been big in size, and her parents and sister are also big in size, as well. I myself, I'm an overweight guy, but my parents are not, they are as slim as a nail.

Starting last year, my friend began to drastically lose weight, but she was always denying it, but; everyone around her could see that she was losing weight also.  After constant asking what was going on with her, she then told me she went to the doctor and did a complete physical examination and she said that the doctor told her that it was because; her menstruation was now regular and that, that was the reason why she was losing so much weight so fast!

I was happy to hear that she was not pregnant! But, I repeatedly asked her for the doctors laboratory test results but she never showed me and then she always makes me feel guilty for not trusting her when she tells me how something is!

When I think about it , I can say that she has lost a lot of weight and had became very distant with me and sometimes angered with me for no apparent reason. we rarely go out together even though she has her own car now. I found out that she was not pregnant again, because she had to take an airplane flight and I know that pregnant women aren't allowed to fly on long international flights.

After seriously thinking, I realized that it wasn't until after she started loosing a lot of weight without exercising or dieting, that she was also "Tirando Hopi Puya" = tirando mucho peo = (passing gas/wind) = (farting)! I am very concerned because our relationship isn't how it was before she lost so much weight, and we hardly chat, even though she is in school studying a lot, but I don't want to accuse her of being unfaithful from when she first started losing weight  and I don't want to disturb her whiles she is at school studying. But I saw a documentary that had a sign of serious illness when people take drugs or catch some sickness.

PLEASE HELP ME TO UNDERSTAND THIS, PLEASE; BECAUSE I AM THINKING THE WORST?  

Cordially;

Gordita's Friend

Dear Gordita’s Friend,

Thank you for contacting us at Ask Nina in The JJosephaNews Advice Column. I am always grateful and thankful for all the Ask Nina’s question and I apologize for any of those which we may not have given a response Yet! Please be patient with us and I can guarantee you that we will continue to log and categorize all the questions and respond to them as best as possible as soon as possible!

Dear Gordita’s Friend; again, let me thank you for sharing your experience and voicing your concerns and questions I hope my response is not too late for you! Being in a relationship can be tough work, balancing the good with the not-so-good, the in’s with the out’s  and the up’s and downs. But you are a young and have your whole life ahead of you, however mistakes that you may have committed today or yesterday can come back to haunt you, so be vigilant in your decisions of who you share your intimate life with. Also may I also suggest a warning alert  about the dangers of unprotected sex which may result in unwanted teenage pregnancy and or contracting a sexually transmitted disease (STD).

Let me also point out a favorite cliche in Curacao, “Just because it glitters, does not mean that it is gold”. As well as people will usually respect you for as much as you respect yourself, so don’t let anyone take advantage of you or your kindness and thirdly, don’t stop improving yourself, if you are not in school register for some higher education and continue to increase your educational value and worth. Please stay tuned to next week’s advice column and the week after that where I will be addressing the topic of Curasalenos wanting to pursue a degree in Business and  in Curasalenos wanting to pursue a career in Medicine, respectively Nov. 19th and 26th)

You yourself have recognized that some things apparently are not right. You may have a rightful and serious concern, about your friend’s health as well as your very own.

First; let’s deal with yours:

• I would advise that you seek professional medical consultation to see if you are overweight or obese as well as your “sugar” or Glucose level in the blood so that you can discover if you are at a higher risk of developing secondary complications that may shorten your life from being overweight.
• Don’t forget to request your doctor to get your blood pressure taken, weight and height and ask him to calculate your BMI at the same time.
• But don’t be alarmed if your house doctor orders a serology report for STD (Sexually Transmitted Disease)  with a VDRL testing, along with a test for HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus); the virus that causes AIDS (Acquired ImmunoDeficiency Syndrome).
• Also don’t be alarmed if he orders a Urinalysis of your urine and a Hematology assay for drawn blood with particular note to your HbA1C (Hemoglobin:Plasma Glucose Concentration) and  Glucose Spectrum as well as your Cholesterol ∧ Triglyceride Profile in order to see what are the cardiovascular risk and stress that may exist on your body’s major organs such as the Heart, Liver, Kidney and Pancreas.
• You should also not be surprised if you may be requested to do an EKG (ElectroCardioGram) or any other non-invasive type of body Analytical machinery, especially if your hormone levels may be over or under producing.
• However, if there are gastrointestinal anomalies then you may also be required to submit a stool sample for other analysis.

In the case of your friend, if you have seen her taking any type of pills regularly or religiously, then it could be the indications of any numerous diet pill fads from leptin to lipozene, because it is very difficult to transition from being as big as a house one day to the next day being as small as a mouse , or from being as big as a sumo wrestler one day and the next day as thin as a runway model.

You have noted the increase flatulence (passing gas/wind) and that seems to be one of the side effect of taking some diet pills which try to speed up the metabolism with normally a caffeine substance and then a filler substance which expands and takes up a volume in the stomach thereby causing the brain to stomach feedback to switch to satiety over hunger. It is usually these filler substances that move thru the digestive system that may also cause distension or “burping” when via the mouth or flatulence when from the back passageway (anus).

As it relates to pregnancy and taking international flights, well those are of particular caution to women in their 3rd trimester of pregnancy and even then it is still under a doctor’s advice because you can imagine. However, according to the new health guidelines for pregnant women:

“Most airlines will allow you to fly up to 27 weeks pregnant without concern. After this point your risk of going into labor increases so you may need written permission from your doctor or midwife that confirms your due date and your ability to fly safely. Each airline has its own set of restrictions and usually cut off flying for those that are around 36 weeks pregnant. This could be as short as 32 weeks if you are carrying twins”.

Now, in the case of your friend unexplained weight loss, or losing weight without trying, particularly if it's significant or persistent may be a sign of an underlying medical disorder for your friend if she persist in saying she is not taking any diet pills or on a dieting program.

The point at which unexplained weight loss becomes a medical concern is not exact. But many doctors agree that a medical evaluation is called for if you lose more than 5 percent of your weight in six months to a year time.

Your weight is affected by your calorie intake, activity level, overall health, age, nutrient absorption, and economic and social factors.

According to the Mayo Clinic Staff, unexplained weight loss has many causes, medical and nonmedical. Often, a combination of things results in a general decline in your health and a related weight loss. Sometimes a specific cause isn't found and is labelled idiopathic.

Usually, an unrecognized cancer will have other symptoms or abnormalities of laboratory tests, in addition to unexplained weight loss.

I have listed a potential causes of unexplained weight loss which includes the following;

HIV/AIDS, Cancer, Heart failure in addition to Table 1.0 which separates everything into 4 major categories of Digestive Related, Hormonal Associated, Mental and Other/Miscellaneous.

Table 1.0
Digestive Related	Hormonal Associated	Mental	Other/ Miscellaneous
Dental problems Celiac disease Changes in diet or appetite Changes in sense of smell Changes in sense of taste Crohn's disease Peptic ulcer Ulcerative colitis	Addison's disease (adrenal insufficiency) Hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid) Hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid) Hypercalcemia Diabetes	Depression Dementia Parkinson's disease	Medications Substance abuse (alcohol, cocaine, other) Tuberculosis COPD

So I would encourage you to share this information and encourage her to seek professional medical consultation because there could be an underlying problem in the waiting if nothing is detected at the first check-up and in this case taking a Curasaleno written health examination to determine if she is healthy is not sufficient nor would it be recognized outside the shores of Curacao to indicate her certificate of good health. In the example of Curacao’s 2015 health certificate for students to completing their internship, The Crusade in The Petition for Justice the major point was that it was not valid nor was it probably useful beyond the shores of Curacao to pay 50 guilders for sitting a written health examination. Such a so-called health certificate should be called a health passport and not a health certificate because it indicates that a person may have the basic knowledge of what is “basic hygienic and healthy practices and protocol” , but it doesn't mean that a person is healthy inside their body of cells, tissues, muscles, organs and systems.

Therefore; Gordita’s Friend, I implore you to stand tall and stand strong with the confidence and zeal of a prideful young man, that emits that you are worthy and valuable, not only as a friend, but as a very good friend who is ever watchful and concerned for those around you and your “Friend”.

Remember; “You can lead a horse to the pond, but you can’t force it to drink the water”

Take are and remain mindful and truthful to yourself and thank you so very much for sharing your story with us and for your patience.

Stay tuned next week on NOV. 19th and NOV. 26th as we take a look at Business schools and Medical schools and Curasalenos pursuit to studying Business and Medicine.

If you have a question and need an answer, then Ask Nina!

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About Ask Nina

"Ask Nina" is an advice column founded, created and operated by Josefina Josepha under the pen name of "Nina". The advice column is managed by JJosepha News. The advice column’s mission is to impart compassionate, sound advice and incorporating expert advice sought from authorities, while delivering a layman’s approach with the straightforward style of a good friend. Have a question, need an answer, Ask Nina!

DISCLAIMER: The advice offered in this column is intended for informational purposes only. The use of this column is not intended to replace or substitute for any professional, financial, medical, legal, or other professional advice. If you have specific concerns or a situation in which you require professional, psychological or medical help, you should consult with an appropriately trained and qualified specialist. The opinions or views expressed in this column are not intended to treat or diagnose; nor are they meant to replace the treatment and care that you may be receiving from a licensed professional, physician or mental health professional. This column, its author, the newspaper and publisher are not responsible for the outcome or results of following any advice in any given situation. You, and only you, are completely responsible for your actions.

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