You have been coughing for two weeks. You feel tired, but not sick enough to stay in bed. Then your doctor says the words walking pneumonia, and suddenly you start thinking about your kids, your coworkers, and everyone you hugged this week. The first question almost everyone asks is a simple one: is walking pneumonia
You fall asleep, and an hour or two later you are awake again, making your way to the bathroom in the dark. Then again at 2am. Then again at 4am. By the time morning arrives you feel like you barely slept, because in a meaningful sense you did not. If frequent urination at night has
Waking up with mucus in your throat every morning is one of those small annoyances that can quietly shape how you start your day. You clear your throat a few times, maybe cough once or twice, and go about your routine without giving it much thought. But if this has become a daily pattern for
If you have been told your cholesterol is normal, your blood pressure is fine, and your heart health looks good on paper, you might assume your arteries are clear. A growing body of research is challenging that assumption in a significant way. Studies using advanced imaging technology are finding that silent atherosclerosis, which is the
One moment you feel completely fine and the next your hands are trembling, your legs feel like they might give out, and a wave of weakness has come over you that feels alarming and out of nowhere. Feeling weak and shaky all of a sudden is one of those symptoms that stops people in their
You apply lip balm constantly, drink plenty of water, and your lips are still dry, cracked, and peeling no matter what you do. Maybe they are so dry that they hurt when you smile or eat. Maybe they crack at the corners or peel in layers that never seem to fully heal. If you keep
Your alarm is set for 7am. You wake up at 6:15. Every single morning. Sometimes it is 5:50, sometimes 6:30, but it is always before the alarm and always earlier than you want to be awake. You lie there trying to fall back asleep, watching the minutes tick by, and eventually give up. If you
You are sitting at your desk, relaxing on the couch, or lying in bed about to fall asleep when suddenly a muscle somewhere in your body jumps on its own. Your eyelid flutters for a few seconds. Your calf twitches out of nowhere. A muscle in your thigh pulses repeatedly without any input from you.
You reach for your coffee cup and notice your hand is trembling. You try to write something down and your handwriting looks shakier than it used to. You hold your hands out in front of you and there is a fine, persistent tremor that was not there a year ago. If you keep asking yourself
You are fast asleep and then suddenly, without any warning, your calf seizes up like a fist clenching as hard as it can and will not let go. The pain jolts you awake, you scramble to stretch your leg, and you spend the next few minutes limping around the bedroom waiting for the muscle to