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Thursday, June 01, 2006

People can surprise you....

This weekend, I was moonlighting at a small town hospital. The people in the area are for the most part simple folks; many live on farms, or have been in that community for generations.

I admitted an 83 year-old man who'd had a stroke. He hadn't seen a doctor in probably ten years, so in addition to treating his stroke I diagnosed him with hypertension and hyperlipidemia. He asked what he should be eating.

When I give diet advice, usually I don't use the word vegetarian, let alone vegan. "Lots of fruits and vegetables and whole grains. Stay away from animal products, like meat, eggs, or dairy."

His response: "Oh, vegetarian! My daughter is a vegetarian!"

"Yes," I said. "You should definitely have her help you out."

Never in a million years would I think this man or his family would have any concept of what a vegetarian is. I was pleasantly surprised.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's cool that you moonlight in small towns. We need more people like you who are willing to do that. I think it is great the vegetarianism has spread enough that it is becoming more common in all communities. What was his response to a vegetarian diet?

Flo @ Yielded Heart said...

Great story, VeganDoc. I'm so thankful for people like you, and hope that there are more.

Now I wish my in-laws and step-mom would have you as their physician!

Danielle said...

Well, that's really cool! He should listen to his daughter.

KleoPatra said...

I love those kind of stories, VeganDoc, and those kind of surprises.

Wonderful what you do and how you do it... hope and pray there are others who follow your lead!!!!