Olympics – watercress words by Dr Aletha

updated August 26, 2024

August is an exception among months. It has no major or federal holidays in the United States. Although the temperatures still feel hot and muggy, many students and teachers return to school and college for the “fall” semester.

If you planned to buy a new swimsuit it’s too late. If you need a new winter coat, they’re available, if you want to try one on when it’s 95 degrees outside. Halloween, Thanksgiving, and even Christmas merchandise are already on sale.

I started medical school in August

My first day as an MS1, first-year medical student, was August 24, 1974. After four arduous years I graduated, completed a three-year residency in Family Medicine, board-certified, and practiced for 41 years.

Today medical schools hold a White Coat Ceremony for incoming students but not then. But I was still proud to don my white coat and follow residents and attendings around the hospital.

One day a week we were sent off campus to a private doctor’s office to observe and “shadow” them. I watched a family physician interact with a wide variety of patients he treated as friends. That’s when I fell in love with Family Medicine.

Years later we practiced in the same medical group. Since I had been there first, he called me his “senior partner”. But to me, he was forever my mentor. He practiced well into his seventies, then was injured in a serious auto accident and never practiced again.

These are the only photos of me in the yearbook. I don’t think I knew there would be a yearbook. I didn’t socialize much so that must explain my absence.I wonder how they accumulated enough photos since no one had cameras on their phones then.

With that hair and jumper, I definitely look like a ’70s girl. I’ve changed and so has the Health Sciences Center; when I visit now, I hardly know my way around, with new structures and name changes.

Medicine has changed a great deal since then, and perhaps the biggest change is the increased number and percentage of women in medicine. In my class of 150 students, 25 of us were women. In the average medical school class today, that number would be 75 or more-at least half.

There are still more men than women practicing medicine. It will take a few more years to catch up as older male physicians retire and more young women physicians begin practice. I have enjoyed more female colleagues as our numbers increased over the past 40 years.

My school, the University of Oklahoma, now holds a White Coat Ceremony. Several weeks before, they ask us alumni to write a note offering advice to a student. They print it on a card and place it in the coat’s pocket.

I don’t remember exactly what I wrote. I congratulate them for getting this far and welcome them as a future colleague. I tell them all the hard work will be worthwhile because what they do is valuable. I don’t tell them it won’t always be recognized and appreciated.

I don’t know if the school includes our name on the card, but probably not. I have never heard from one of them. I always wonder if they find my advice helpful.

Why women physicians are good for health care

The first woman graduate of a United States medical school was born in Bristol England in 1821. Elizabeth Blackwell came to this country as a child and originally had no interest in medicine. But when a dying friend told her, “I would have been spared suffering if a woman had been my doctor”, she found…

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The Olympics concluded on August 11

Most of the Olympic events occurred in August so we watched many of our favorite events, although they don’t all get equal broadcast time.

The Olympic Games remind me of my trip to Greece. I saw the Panathenaic Stadium, site of the first Olympic games in Athens.

The Panathenaic Stadium was built for the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 in Athens, Greece. It is the only stadium in the world made completely of marble.

In 330 BC a stadium was built at this site for the games of the Panathenaea. It fell into disuse with the rise of Christianity and eventually most of the site was destroyed and forgotten.

After archaeological evidence of the stadium was uncovered in the 1830s, the site was excavated in 1870. In 1895 the new stadium was built there to hold the 1896 Olympics.

From the Panathenaic Stadium, the Olympic flame is officially passed to the host country of each Olympic Games. It continues to be used for sporting events and functions.

click on any photo to start a slideshow

A unique archaeological monument, a living symbol of the ancient and modern heritage of sport and the Olympic Games.
PANATHENAIC STADIUM

The Democratic National Convention-August 19

The Democratic National Convention was held August 19-22, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois.

On July 21, 2024, by letter, President Biden informed the nation that he was withdrawing from his reelection campaign. This marks the first time in 50 years that a sitting president did not run for reelection. (And I remember that time also. Do you know which President it was?)

Chicago skyline from Lake Michigan with Navy Pier in foreground — Chicago city skyline and Navy Pier from a boat on Lake Michigan-photo by Dr. Aletha

President Biden and other Democratic leaders endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris who accepted the nomination. She chose Tim Walz, Governor of Minnesota as her running mate.

The Paralympics begin on August 28

We are not done with international sports competitions yet. The Paralympic Games begin on August 28, 2024, in Paris and conclude in September.

The word “Paralympic” derives from the Greek preposition “para” (beside or alongside) and the word “Olympic”.

Paralympics are the parallel games to the Olympics showing how the two movements exist side-by-side.

Sport for athletes with an impairment has existed for more than 100 years. It was widely introduced after World War II to assist injured veterans and civilians.

On September 22, 1989, the International Paralympic Committee was founded as an international non-profit organization to act as the global governing body of the Paralympic Movement.

The Paralympics reminds me of my late friend Bob who walked with crutches. As a boy, he was left paralyzed due to a bout of polio, before the vaccine was available. But that did not stop him from living a full life.

Bob’s wife, a medical assistant, worked in my clinic. We also attended the same church so I knew him and their three children. Despite his limited walking, Bob learned to bowl and did so competitively, winning several tournaments. He unfortunately passed in middle age of unrelated causes and his family misses him sorely.

You’ll enjoy this video about the Evolution of the Paralympic Games from the official Paralympics YouTube page.

Exploring the HEART of Health

The last President to resign without running for reelection was Lyndon Johnson, in 1968. Did you guess correctly?

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Dr. Aletha

A tour of the U.S. Olympic Training Center, Colorado Springs, Colorado

A visit to the United States Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs showcases the dedication and resilience of Olympic and Paralympic athletes. Promoting physical activity, it emphasizes the health benefits of exercise, while sharing the “Winning Attitudes” and determination exhibited by champions. The center inspires a commitment to personal excellence and perseverance.

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Cover Photo

The Bizell Memorial Library on the University of Oklahoma campus in Norman Oklahoma. Photographer-Dr. Aletha

On a trip to Colorado Springs my husband and I visited the United States Olympic Training Center . I hope these photos help you understand why his facility is called the “flagship” training center. Both Olympic and Paralympic athletes on Team USA train here.

You’re welcome to continue here, or you can read an updated version of this post at this link

Life Lessons from Team USA

As much as I admire the elite athletes who comprise the Olympic team, the Paralympic athletes captivate my imagination.

These are athletes who compete with, not necessarily despite, significant physical impairments; but to call them “disabled” does them an injustice. Many of them play and compete in physically demanding sports without full use of their arms and legs; some don’t even have all of their arms and legs.

As we walked around the complex on a guided tour, I remembered the importance of physical activity for our physical and mental health, and made a note to remind you too. Almost no one will disagree with the recommendation to include and increase physical activity in our daily lives.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans call for moderate-intensive physical activity for 150 minutes or more per week, vigorous-intensity activity for at least 75 minutes per week, or an equivalent combination of the 2, and engaging in muscle strengthening activity at least twice per week.

Medical studies show that exercise can prevent or improve many chronic health conditions and lack of exercise contributes to many diseases.
Physical activity may reduce the risk of cancers of the breast, colon, uterus, prostate and pancreas.
Regular exercise may help prevent diabetes and heart disease.
Exercise can relieve joint and back pain due to arthritis.
Depression is treated with physical activity successfully

As we walked through the USA Shooting area I picked up a flyer titled “Winning Attitudes”. I liked what it said so I am using some of the ideas to illustrate my photos. I hope they will encourage you to develop a “winning attitude” in all areas of your life.

Enjoy this brief tour through the Olympic Complex and if you go to Colorado Springs, be sure and visit; the cost is reasonable and worth the price.

Become excited, confident, and enthusiastic about your goals.

statue of athletes at entrance to facility

Winners have the ability to look inside themselves and find that special dream.

“Olympic Strength” statue- four athletes supporting the world with a figure skater beside them

Winners focus on solutions, not problems.

Winners have positive attitudes in all elements of their lives. The more you think about, talk about, and write about a thing happening, the greater the certainty of that thing happening.