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High cortisol causes patient to feel awful amid normal tests

DEAR DR. ROACH: I’ve been feeling just awful. My doctor put me through the normal tests, and all were good. A neurologist recommended that I get a cortisol test. I did, and it showed a high cortisol level. I’d never heard of this. Would you explain what high cortisol is, how it is treated and if there are any natural cures or therapies? — S.K. ANSWER: Cortisol is a critical hormone that is needed for the function of many body systems. Without cortisone, the body cannot respond to stress, and a stressful event can literally kill a patient. A medical condition called ...

Spring in full force: Don’t forget about the Centre County Grange Fair!

Spring has finally arrived, unfolding with flowers poking through the soil, longer days, and the feeling of renewal as the sun hits your skin for the first time in a while. For most Pennsylvania farmers, spring brings the start of the planting season. This marks a quiet but powerful start of growing not only crops but also growing hope for a better tomorrow not only in agriculture but also as a community. The thoughts and brainstorming begin within the community for people of all ages who are thinking ahead about what exhibits they might proudly show at the Centre County Grange Fair this ...

Ending gerrymandering

In the debate over redistricting, one truth is too often buried beneath legal jargon and partisan maneuvering: Gerrymandering is, at its core, about voter dilution. It is the quiet engineering of political outcomes, line by line, until communities that should speak with strength are instead reduced to whispers. For decades, one of the most consequential tactics has been “cracking,” splitting cohesive communities, often made up of Black voters, across multiple districts so they become a minority everywhere and a majority nowhere. The impact is profound. A population large enough to ...

Dear Annie: A letter left without a word

Dear Annie: I’m devastated. My oldest and dearest friend of 50 years visited me recently. We had a good day together, and everything seemed normal. A few hours after she left, I found a letter she left in my bathroom. It said some very hurtful things — that our friendship was toxic and she was walking away. She’s blocked me from calling or texting her. I’m so sad and depressed. I don’t know why she didn’t feel that talking to me about this was necessary. I feel the letter was a cowardly act. She didn’t give a reason for ending the relationship, just that it was ...

Celebrating Mother’s Day with a look at mothers in collectibles

Celebrate Mother’s Day with a look at mothers in collectibles! Decorative arts are filled with images of mothers in domestic scenes, attending to household responsibilities, or enjoying time with their children. Mothers and children are often pictured in advertisements, selling images of ...

The party Americans want doesn’t exist yet

In the decades since the 1850s, third parties — parties other than the Democrats and Republicans — don’t have a great record of success in U.S. elections. Who remembers the Free Soil Party, the Know Nothings, the Populist Party, the Bull Moose Party, the Dixiecrats or the American Independent Party? And yet, I wonder whether things might be different in the coming decade. The Gallup Poll shows the largest political party in the country is no party at all. Forty-five percent of voters consider themselves independents with the Republicans and Democrats tied at 27% each. The ...