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Continuous symptoms after COVID point to a bacterial infection

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am a 49-year-old woman who recently had COVID. When I was sick with it, I lost my sense of taste and smell. I no longer have COVID, but I still have a stuffy nose with no sense of taste or smell. Then one day, out of nowhere, I smell this horrible smell, like an infection. I went to the doctor and was told that it was a sinus infection. I was given 14 days of antibiotics. I took my meds, and then when I thought all was better, nope! I was smelling this horrible smell again, only to be accompanied with some awful drainage. I blow my nose just to get milky lime-green ...

So you want to be a plumber

The skilled trades have become hot of late. That has many young people dropping plans to attend college. Meanwhile, some desk-bound professionals are said to gaze longingly at nearby construction sites. They daydream about trading spreadsheets for tool belts. They imagine becoming plumbers, electricians or carpenters — welders, riggers or crane operators. The list of hands-on jobs that require real training is long. Why the change of hearts? Three reasons: 1. Artificial intelligence will soon do the thinking required for many of these office occupations. 2. The realization that ...

Lonely in a lovely town

Dear Annie: My husband and I recently moved to a new town, and I feel lonelier than I expected to feel at this stage of life. We are new empty nesters. Our youngest left for college in the fall, and not long after that we relocated for my husband’s job. On paper, it made sense. It is a nice area, safe, pretty and full of things people say they love. But most days I feel like I am walking around in someone else’s life. Back home, I knew who I was. I had my routines, my friends, my familiar grocery store, my favorite coffee place where someone would ask how my kids were doing. ...

Man with very low kidney function chooses to avoid dialysis

DEAR DR. ROACH: A loved one of mine has had kidney problems for his whole life. He’s now on the transplant list, and his kidney function is very low. But he continues to avoid dialysis, saying that he’s not ready for it. Surprisingly, his heart health, cholesterol and blood pressure are always great when tested. He sometimes has swelling if he’s on his feet for too long, but this can be reduced by going on medication for a few days. He also has uncontrolled diabetes. At one point, his A1C level was over 11%, but now it is closer to 6% or 7%. In addition, he’s on a biologic due ...

State of the Union showcases a gelded Congress

The president wasted no time getting to his lies. It started in the first minute, when he claimed that: “When I spoke in this chamber 12 months ago, I had just inherited a nation in crisis, with a stagnant economy, inflation at record levels, a wide-open border, horrendous recruitment for military and police, rampant crime at home and wars and chaos all over the world.” None of that is truthful. Economic growth was actually a bit better during Joe Biden’s final year in office (2.8%) than in Trump’s first year (2.2%). In March of last year, inflation was not at “record ...

Supreme Court throws out Trump tariffs and upholds Constitution

So much for the notion that the Supreme Court, with its 6-3 majority of justices appointed by Republican presidents, was going to be a rubber stamp for Donald Trump. That is a frequently voiced charge by partisan Democrats, and a fear of many ambivalent voters who find many of Trump’s policies agreeable but worry about his overreach on policy and personnel. That’s one political meme refuted by the court’s Learning Resources v. Trump decision last Friday, announced after more than the expected delay for the drafting of concurring opinions. The court struck down Trump’s beloved ...