Ask them in a million different forms if needed, but ask. When it comes to medications or any new trend that will be ingested or inhaled that is touted as easy, harmless or some form of miracle may we always ask questions. It’s acknowledging that what we don’t know can cause more harm than good. The mentality of blind trust and unknown assumption must be left in the past.
Ignorance is bliss…
Maybe if we’re talking about caloric intake when downing a latte on the weekend or cotton candy at the county fair. When it comes to prescribed pills, over the counter meds or anything smoked / inhaled all bets are off. Ignorance, in these instances, can be lethal. Knowledge is power.
We’ve been lead down a long and misguided road. Most of us have been wired to trust packaging, advertising and what our medical professionals tell us. But guess what? The only one who can have your absolute BEST interest in mind is YOU! This is not me advising anyone to chuck all medical insight out the window. False. This is me encouraging you (and me) to ask more questions when it comes to what is and isn’t being advised, prescribed or advertised as safe. It’s looking out for our own best interest.
What we don’t know can cause more harm than good
Let’s start with cigarettes. Doing a bit of a throw back here. Back in the day before anyone really knew the addictive and physical implications of cigarettes they were touted as safe and even healthy. What? Seriously. Fast forward a heap of years later and we’re in the same territory yet again with Vaping. Until very recently there was little evidence documenting the negative consequences of vaping. It was advertised as safe or even organic. What? But in a billion dollar industry cash comes before ethics.
We have adults who simply wanted to cut down on smoking cigarettes or stop smoking hitting the vape more than they would if they were smoking a cigarette. We have teens lured into the web of thinking it’s safe and the cool thing to do. Kids who never picked up a cigarette are hitting their JUUL in class, in their bedrooms or on the way to the bus stop. It’s a compulsion all under the pretext of it being safe.
Research…
When it comes to a heap of things out there quite often it may be touted as safe and holding reduced risk before adequate research has been provided. This is where what we don’t know can do more harm than good. Another example? Oxycodone. Not even twenty years ago oxy was peddled to medical professionals as safe, non-addictive and an easy fix. Less than five years ago it was handed out it many establishments like vending machine meds. Easy in, out and get your pills. Without even realizing what was happening athletes, moms, uncles and grandparents were hooked under the pretense of being prescribed a pill with little to no explanation of its negatives.
We are not sheep…
When we ask questions, research and advocate for ourselves and our loved ones it makes us safer. Are you in recovery? Is there a family history of addiction? How long has this product been out for? Have any studies or research been conducted to document the safety or harm of this product? All of these are viable questions to ask. Doing a bit of research or leg work is a positive. Too many of us have been wired to not raise any flags or pose inconvenience to our doctors and just do as we are told. Advocating for ourselves and loved ones in not an inconvenience to anyone. Rather, it’s a form of empowerment and strengthening the safety net we can impose upon the ones we love.
What we don’t know can cause more harm than good..
So with that realization, we go forward and we ask questions, consider our family (and personal) history and get the knowledge ball rolling. May we not kick ourselves for the things we did or questions we did not ask in the past. That, my friends, is not irrelevant. Today is a new day. It’s a clean slate. Let’s move forward and know that our decisions and mindset from this day forward is what counts.
