in your own hands

is it just me, or does anyone else see the problem with drug manufacturers gratuitously hawking their goods directly to the general public? shouldn't they be trying to impress the medical care providers of the world? it seems to me that lipitor's marketing department didn't consider a target audience when they masterminded their plan. and! why can't i watch a football game without seeing a commercial warning the world about the apparently widespread crisis that is erectile dysfunction?

guys ... come on ... what the hell is going on?

granted, lots of us probably get headaches and heartburn. unless we're alicia ... if that's the case, we only get heartburn when we're pregnant. we may even have muscle aches, the flu, or a nasty cough.

yes. those are pretty basic and affect a good percentage of us. says me ... i don't have the numbers handy. i'd even go as far as including migraines in that list because i know people who've had them.

gosh ... insomnia, you say? that's right on the line. i'm sure lots of people suffer from it, but i'm also sure we have too many "cures" for it. you may try over-the-counter but end up having to talk to your doctor.

but what about meningitis? if you have meningitis are you going to trust your doctor to prescribe the right treatment or are you going to demand your treatment based on a commercial that aired during "how i met your mother?" you know, the one that was sandwiched between the ads for the latest pizza hut deal and bleach.

you also have serious decisions to make about restless leg syndrome, overactive bladder (a.k.a. frequent bladder urges ... we all have internal plumbing), peripheral artery disease, genital herpes, acid reflux disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, enlarged prostate, and depression.

what? is most of the country afflicted by these? i feel so left out.

so! today i'm staying up until 3 a.m. and occasionally spinning myself around ... that should get me caught up on a few side effects.