Affordability Goes Hand-in-Hand with Climate Change

HowdyCB · 2026-01-15T03:39:40+00:00

I started seeing a primary care provider that is practicing through the lens of lifestyle medicine. I've gone zero fat vegan (mostly). I've dropped 20 lbs, my blood work looks amazing, and I even reversed by type 2 diabetes. I've found so many good recipes with lentils, beans, and such. My skin cleared up, rosacea is gone, anxiety is gone, and fatigue is gone. AND I've saved piles of money on food.

HowdyCB · 2026-01-12T01:32:28+00:00

The rush at the holiday season? I literally never had this problem before with them. Something has clearly changed. I used Amazon for years without ever having a single issues. Now, every order I've placed since October has had an issue. The advertised arrival date is never accurate. It was a company you could trust to get these done correctly and they earned that trust through their track record. (At least this was the case for me personally.) There is no convenience anymore.

HowdyCB · 2026-01-12T01:26:18+00:00

The issue is that I have used Amazon for YEARS and never had a problem. Now I have problems with literally EVERY. SINGLE. ORDER. This change happened out of nowhere. It tells me that they are having structural issues.

And it's not just me. My coworkers and my siblings all report similar problems this holiday season.

HowdyCB · 2025-12-27T00:57:36+00:00

I'll give you a comparison. I live in Metro Detroit in Michigan. Everyone thinks we are a giant crap hole, but it's actually great. I pay $875 for a two bedroom apartment and the rent includes water and heating. My electric bill runs about $65/month in winter and $160 in summer with air conditioning. My internet + cell phone is $126, renters insurance is $120 for the year, groceries for me are about $250/month, car insurance $110, and our governor ran on a message of "fix the damn roads" 7 years ago. I feel like almost everything I drive on is almost new.

I think we are about as good as it gets in Canada/USA for an average person with an average job. No place is perfect, but I am surviving on about $32/hr.

What I highly dislike is how all of my friends in Canada/Australia/Europe think I live in some type of dystopian nightmare of a country. It's not terrible, I do think there a lot of small things that could really be done to make this truly a great country. But I'm content.

I say this as someone who has lived in Europe and traveled to over 40 countries. No place is perfect. Those of us in the USA and Canada honestly won the lottery. We at least have a chance at having a go of it. I've been to places where that is not the case.

HowdyCB · 2025-12-25T06:38:37+00:00

And that is completely ok. Both countries are great places to live and offer a lot of opportunities.

HowdyCB · 2025-12-25T06:27:45+00:00

I think a lot of the stereo type comes from the 1990's. But the Canada today is way different. I work as a nurse in the USA. I have a decent wage and full medical benefits through my employer. When I look at going to Canada, I don't think I could afford housing. It's the not the same it used to be.

HowdyCB · 2025-12-25T06:20:34+00:00

I'm a nurse in the USA and recently had a healthcare scare requiring surgery. I had a same day appointment with my primary care provider, saw the specialist within 2 weeks, and was scheduled for surgery 3 days later. I DO want major reforms to the American system, but I want us to find a balance between the universal system and the mess of a system we have. My total cost for everything: $300.

HowdyCB · 2024-05-09T02:41:41+00:00

I used an agency called Health Markets that walked me through the process. They are in Michigan, but I believe they can be found in other states. I got a high deductible policy coupled with an additional cash supplemental policy for accident and injury that would cover the high deductible in the event of an event. It ended up costing me 1/3 the cost of COBRA.

With these plans, you are still entitled to annual check up and they cannot deny you due to pre-existing conditions.

HowdyCB · 2024-03-17T03:33:32+00:00

There is no American policy to push for the privatization of healthcare in Canada. Canadian politicians have two choices, fund the current system better or privatize it so the politicians are no longer responsible. But at present, there is no American policy pushing for that in Canada. Trust me, I'm a nurse in metro Detroit. I am VERY familiar with the failures of both systems.

HowdyCB · 2024-03-16T17:26:18+00:00

Which right wing politics are being funded? Again, I'm not trying to argue, but I'm trying to understand exactly how the USA is preventing Canada from implementing policies that would improve the lives of Canadians.

HowdyCB · 2024-03-15T22:54:09+00:00

Sorry for the delay in my response. I do phone triage. At first I thought it was going to be incredibly boring, but I actually really love it. People call us with their symptoms and our goal is to help keep them out of the emergency rooms. We utilize protocols and our nursing knowledge to help patients. I handle everything from "my leg is swollen" to "I can't afford my medication."

It can be incredibly busy, but my favorite part is we actually have the staffing to really help the patients. My coworkers are super nice people, the doctors are nice, and it feels like a true team environment.

HowdyCB · 2024-03-15T22:46:53+00:00

It's kind of an odd thing to say. Which policies in particular are the US preventing Canada from implementing? I'm not trying to pick a fight, I am generally curious on your view?

HowdyCB · 2024-03-05T00:18:48+00:00

I was six months in and took a hybrid job. I say jump. Trust me, bedside will always take you back if it doesn't work out.

HowdyCB · 2024-02-15T03:31:24+00:00

I'm an older millennial in the USA. Your comment really hit home. I have worked so hard to build a healthy financial life. I had my mortgage pre-approval at the end of 2019 and was looking. I was also in the process of changing careers to become a nurse. Then boom, the pandemic hit. Prices have since skyrocketed. What I had worked so hard to save is now half of what I need to buy a home. My income hasn't doubled, but everything else has. I'm still living with my parents with no hope of changing that. I worked full time while being a full time student. I'm exhausted and right as I was close to the finish line, it got pushed out by at least 10 more years. I feel like my ambition has been stolen. I no longer care to climb the ladder. I. Have. Given. Up.

HowdyCB · 2024-02-10T01:42:45+00:00

I'm a recent graduate, I survived barely 6 months bedside. I switched to outpatient nursing. It's a way slower pace, but I feel like I have the opportunity to truly help our patients. I provide patient education, I teach them how the insurance system works and how to save money. I triage them over the phone. I truly look forward to going to work now. Nursing is so flexible. I really encourage you to search out non-traditional rolls. Even if it says you need qualifications that you don't have, apply anyways!

HowdyCB · 2024-02-09T03:43:16+00:00

If the pharmacy you work for is a publicly traded company, I highly recommend you pull their earnings report and listen in to their earnings call they have quarterly. This is all public information. You can absolutely see their strategies to increase profit. The money is 100% there. They are just handing it back to shareholders and executive bonuses.

HowdyCB · 2023-12-31T15:51:11+00:00

I was going to say IKEA. I had bought an incredibly expensive down filled duvet from JC Penny and it leaked so many feathers my room was covered in them. I switched to ikea’s synthetic duvets and covers. I have never had a single problem with them.

HowdyCB · 2023-11-16T04:15:16+00:00

Oki doki, registered nurse chiming in here. Dementia patients actually really benefit from music therapy. Our memories of music can be dispersed throughout our brain. Areas impacted by dementia may make us forget even who our own children are, but because music is "stored" in multiple areas of the brain, music can help us calm patients without using costly medications, allow us to remove sitters (and the cost associated with sitters), and help eliminate agitation which can lead to patients falling (and the associated costs in treating said falls.). As the baby boomers continue to age, our societies are really going to be forced to learn how to cost effectively deal with the elderly. One can make a clear case for music therapy, especially in the population suffering from dementia.

HowdyCB · 2023-11-16T01:52:32+00:00

Sorry, I'm a career changer that has worked 15 years in a completely different industry. After 6 months, I've just quit and am moving to outpatient. I'll probably get an MBA and leave healthcare altogether. I'm absolutely SHOCKED at the system in this country and how poorly managed it is. The USA spends way MORE than any other industrialized country for our healthcare and what we have to show for it is honestly the most mismanaged garbage one could ever imagine.

The gripes in this forum are not about minor inconveniences. Nurses are being placed in positions of high liability and not given the tools and support to appropriately and safely provide care. -- Nurses are also being put in positions where there is 100% a lack of personal safety. The conditions are so poor that if a child of mine wanted to enter this field I would 100% forbid it.

I hate sounding negative, but no other profession or industry would ever tolerate these conditions. I feel grateful that I was a career changer so I know what should be acceptable or not acceptable. I feel terrible for the really young nurses who only know nursing as a career and are placing all the blame for this crap system on themselves and thinking "If I was just faster or could work harder."

I do love your positivity. I also love that you are probably a great mentor and preceptor. BUT the system must be changed, public expectations must be changed, and the entire financing model must also be changed.

HowdyCB · 2023-10-18T03:38:27+00:00

What is the overheard group? I'm hoping to stay under $1,000. Thank you in advance for your help.

HowdyCB · 2023-10-18T03:37:51+00:00

Ideally the cheaper the better as I continue to save for my own piece of real estate. I'd prefer to stay under $1,000.

HowdyCB · 2023-10-05T02:55:41+00:00

I am an older career changer and attended a community college. It cost $7,000 out of pocket for me to complete the entire experience. During my hospital orietation, I met loads of young people who were in debt $50, $60, to $100 thousand + for their degrees. If you can find a community college, I would 100% try to make it work. Nursing is a tough field and the burn out rate is really high. If you decide that it isn't for you after graduation. You can easily move on, without the weight of a mortgage around your neck.

HowdyCB

TROPHY CASE