The restructuring of USAID under the Trump administration has significant implications for global health programs. USAID has been a key provider of funding for HIV/AIDS treatment, malaria control, and other public health initiatives worldwide. Reducing its autonomy and placing it under the State Department could make health aid more politically driven, possibly diverting resources away from urgent health crises in favor of geopolitical priorities. These changes could disrupt ongoing health efforts in vulnerable regions, making it harder to combat pandemics and disease outbreaks. For a deeper understanding of USAID's role and implications, visit USAID's role in global development.

When I was a kid, my step father would have me lean against his truck then spank me with an 8’ long 2 x 4. I instantly peed my pants with the first hit every time. Is there a biological explanation of why that happens?

I don't even know if this post is appropriate for this sub, but I'm in a desperate situation and am therefore trying to cast my net as widely as possible.

In short, I'm looking for some helpful information/ advice. My youngest brother is severely autistic (non verbal, totally reliant on others to care for his every need). Up to this point, due to his naturally calm and docile nature, my parents have been willing and able to care for his needs on their own.

This has all changed over the past year however. For whatever reason (possibly puberty as he just turned 15), he has become incredibly aggressive and violent. He works himself into fits of rage that have sometimes necessitated emergency services (ambulance/police) getting involved. His doctors have tried adjusting and updating his medications multiple times, but to no prevail. It has reached a point where these fits of rage are happening on an almost daily basis.

In essence, my family and I don't know what to do. It has become clear that, in the interest of everyone's safety, he needs constant professional care that we simply cannot provide. However, we simply don't know where to turn. What are some resources we could tap into? What organizations are out there? In short, where can we turn for help?

Thank you all in advance!

Dear Doctors Stay in your 5P's

Doctors embody patience when treating complex cases, prioritize critical care while juggling multiple demands, maintain peace amid chaos, foster positivity even in dire situations and many find strength in prayer. These five principles guide them through challenging shifts, helping them provide compassionate care while preserving their own wellbeing. 👇🏻👇🏻👇🏻

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DFhD3JTpmYk/?igsh=MXZ1ZmE3cHIxNGdhZQ==

https://youtube.com/shorts/9wNUK109xww?feature=share

Then nothing, for like 2 weeks, except the persistent breast pain. Finally today, I’ve had what I’d call some light spotting. I usually have very sudden and heavy periods. I feel the breast pain, I expect the cramps within 2-3 days, and when the cramps come, it’s a matter of hours before I begin the heavy bleeding. For being what’s considered “irregular” time wise, when I feel the physical symptoms it’s pretty predictable. This time is weird. I am 36 and had a tubal ligation about 6 years ago. Do I need to be seen by a Dr? I am sexually active with one partner for the last 3 years.

Says it's for consumption but I was curious about whether or not it's good for you before I do. Says it's good for brain function and cellular/neuronal connectivity, as well as it's an antioxidant. Says I should take 5 ml and that I should take it on an empty stomach. Is all of this accurate and is this good for me?

I am a migrant teacher from Argentina, currently living in Florida. I need to get this out of my brain cause I am going INSANE. I married my husband in 2016 in Argentina he is an American citizen for generations. We have two children 4 and 8, I’m 41 and he is 50. We lived in Argentina until 2023 cause I was working and also we have our house and all in Argentina and was recovering for an hematology problem. My in laws were alone in Florida so as the only family we decided to come to America all of us, and for living. So my children go to school and I can help them. First my husband and then I was gonna change my status there in my country but I was alone with my two kids and had a violent break in my house so plans changed and I rush my coming here. My husband is a veteran and the whole time we kept paying IRS as well taxes in Argentina, I have to tell this cause I keep getting on hate because I’m an immigrant. I came in on my visa knowingly to change my status here in the port of entry I explain so I’m in the middle of that (just me, my children are American). Up to just November we had our lawyer that is processing all my papers to get the residency. Husband has a job and we paying rent, I’m not working cause I know it in not legal. We saved 15k for the papers and lawyer and that’s where we are, and I have travels insurance but it is only for emergency. So papers are on process. In here, I fell ill a couple times and required er and hospital stay, but I need to make follow ups cause pretty much I’m dying if I don’t. And I can’t pay out of pocket. I call to healthcare.gov but I only have agents trying to sell me not explaining the process. Drs I’ve seen talked about resources for migrants. Im trying to cope everything with the thought of my clock ticking if I can’t access to anything and I really don’t want to die. Can someone please guide to to a website, organization or something that can help me get through the process? Please… and thank you for reading. It is hard for me to put this in words and trying to stay calm. I’m lost.

For some context: I'm a 21 year old Canadian woman who has come to the decision to join the healthcare field after a couple months of thinking on it. I'm exclusively interested career paths that are not doctors or nurses at this moment as I'm not looking to go back to school for more than 2+ years since I already have a degree. The degree is not healthcare related.

Currently the options I'm looking into are: sonography, x-ray tech, nursing unit assistant/hospital unit clerk, medical device reprocessing, or phlebotomy

I've done enough research to know that in Canada the first two (sonography and x-ray) are the longest education pathways at 2 years but also have the highest pay. Sonography was my top choice until I found out about the chronic hand/back stress problems that majority of techs get (as someone with a prominent family history of arthritis in women that scares me).

So now I'm back to considering them all equally again. I would appreciate anyone throwing their opinion in, especially if you have worked any of these positions. I'm also interested in learning about other careers in healthcare I haven't discovered yet (if they exist in Canada).

I (23M) have been experiencing some concerning health issues.

One day, I suddenly started feeling physically weak, experiencing constant fatigue and muscle weakness. This condition lasted for six months before I decided to get a blood test. The results showed that everything was normal except for a slight vitamin B9 deficiency (3.80 ng/mL, while the minimum recommended level is 5.38 ng/mL) and a severe vitamin D deficiency (7 ng/mL, while deficiency is defined as <10 ng/mL and the optimal range is 30-60 ng/mL).

Could these deficiencies explain how I’m feeling? I’m also constantly hungry, and it feels like eating doesn’t provide me with any nutrients. Thanks for any insights.

I recently read about something called the HMPV virus and wanted to learn more about it. What exactly is it, and how is it different from other respiratory illnesses? Are there specific symptoms to watch out for, and is it treatable? Would love some expert advice or firsthand experiences. Thanks in advance!

I had my gallbladder removed this weekend. I’m finding it really uncomfortable and my doctors aren’t really any help. I have a few incisions on my belly and they have these bandages on them. I vaguely remember the nurse telling me they would just fall off… am I at risk of ripping my stitches by taking them off? They are gross looking and I feel like they need to be cleaned.

I'm fifteen years of age and recently had my ring finger on the left hand displaced by someone at school because they I didn't let them cut in front of me in a lunch line. I'm worried that my finger will end up permanently crooked when finished healing.

The main reason I worry and ask is because one of my uncles showed me his fingers and told me most of which were previously broken, and they were all visibly crooked.

As of the day this was posted, it's been three weeks since the break and trying to make a fist with my hands results in my ring finger bending over my pinky.

I'm just looking for an explanation that doesn't involve sickness of some type. You see, I never get real tired. It's gotten worse since I've started working out all the time. I even have to take a pill at night in order to get sleepy enough to fall asleep if I let it.

This sounds like a wonderful problem, but parts of my body don't agree. I have to be careful not to hurt myself by taking breaks if I'm doing too much. I don't have any of the usual symptoms that explain this. I've been like this all my life. This will get ignored as always happens. So, I'm just venting.

Hi, So yesterday I went to the doctor and they did some tests and told me I have Influenza A, but they expected it to be over today. Well it’s not. I’m just so dizzy, everything is spinning even though I keep drinking a good amount. What should I do?

23M here,

I have had irritation and pain on the right side of my penis for more than a month, but it is very on and off, it usually flares up when I am doing some physical activity and sweating, or sometimes post urination, also sometimes when I wear some tight clothing.

I have severe phimosis so I can't retract my foreskin and check what has happened down there but the area on the right feels a bit hard and tight to touch and very smooth and bit sensitive.

I am concerned that there might be a tumor growing beneath since hardening of penis is first signs of a penile cancer, any advice is appreciated

Hey guys, so i am a heavy picky the eater. And i eat ONLY toast. But recently when i eat the toast i only get more hungry. And its like a throbbing pain. Idk what ti do since eating another food is really hard for me but the more i eat the toast the more ir hurts

Sorry hope this is allowed but I’m (28f) desperate sorry for tmi if you are squeamish don’t ready on. Okay so today is Friday 9.30am I started with loose stools Wednesday 9pm but only went three times that night then since yesterday morning I’ve been every hour or so I took 6 Imodium between Thursday 3pm and Friday 1am because I need to go out yesterday night and I was really desperate for some sleep last night. The problem is since Thursday 9pm I have not gone 15 minutes without needing the toilet for a painful bout of diarrhoea it’s extremely urgent and the cramps don’t stop between bouts. Sometimes I’m barely getting off the toilet before the next bout starts. It’s very liquid, with blood and blood clots. How long can this last? I really need some sleep and some relief from this pain. Warning of tmi again but my piles are so so incredibly sore they are like gold ball size and extremely sore. I’ve been using pile cream but nothing is helping. I’m really desperate for some relief and sleep what can I do? Surely it can’t last much longer ??? Also please don’t tell me to go to hospital becuase I won’t make it I will have many accidents and I know I won’t be seen for ages and I will be having to use the toilet over and over and I don’t feel comfortable with that. Please any advice and any rough time frame when I can see a light at the end of the tunnel??? Thanks in advance and I’m sorry sgain for the gross post

I recently had extensive bloodwork drawn and my hematocrit levels came back slightly high. In addition, randomly my big toe became numb about two weeks ago and I’ve been having a lot of back pain. Are these symptoms of something that I should be concerned about?

Hi guys,

Kind of an odd one, so bear with me. I’m a 23M, fit, healthy, but I’ve been having this bizarre sensation in my left nipple for the past week.

I’ve always had quite sensitive nips but It basically feels like someone is blowing on/tickling/dropping cold droplets of water on my nipple. It’s this nondescript like “sensitive” / vaguely tingly / “overstimulated” nerve feeling from within that I can’t for the life of me figure out…

I figured it could be chafing but I’ve been wearing anti-chafe cream for several days now and it hasn’t gone away. It’s maddening. My toes are curling and im legit gritting my teeth to release the discomfort.

Has anyone dealt with something similar and if so how did you treat it? Just so I know im not going crazy…

Okay so, i have been having pinworms for a long time like 10 or smth and now I’m 14 , but the thing is sometimes they disappear and out of a sudden they reappear again which is really irritating, and I’ve been wanting to get rid of them for a long time but i don’t wanna trouble my parents , so please if you have any tips please tell me, im desperate

Can anyone recommend a good gastroenterologist in the UK??

it started when i was in 4th grade but i just noticed it personally when someone was bothered by it, by my head twitching, not slowly but a sudden twitch of my head. as like as any other person who is concern to him/her health, i dive into internet and self diagnosed myself that i thought it was tics, idk what to call it because i was worried about myself, my body. then it was senior high school when my friend told me why did i do that thing to my head, i just told her that it happends when i think a lot of things but contrary to that it isn't, it also happens even when i just laying on my bed trying to fall asleep. i am now a freshman, i thinks it became more "visible" to other people, when it happens, my nape to my ears there is like uncomfy feeling, and i tried to not do it but the uncomfortability continues

i just want to know why it happens

I'm a fairly skinny person and I've always been the kind that struggles to gain weight. I've been the 'You eat so much but you don't gain weight' person. On the BMI scale I've been roughly on the lower end of the scale, but not malnourished or underweight. I joined the gym last year and went to the gym a few times but not regularly, and I recently quit due to a move and haven't joined another yet.

In the last six months (pretty much when I stopped the gym entirely) I've noticed such a rapid gain of weight. I've put on 6 kilos so far and it seems to be growing steadily with no sign of stabilizing. My appetite has also increased now, which could be one of the reasons. But my body (physically) seems more or less the same. My clothes fit quite right, and I feel the same. There's no belly showing or my arms/thighs getting thicker. I dont know where the weight is going. Since I was underweight, I'm happy with the weight gain but I like it where I am now. I do not want to keep gaining weight. I haven't made any significant life changes so I'm a bit worried about the reason for this sudden weight gain. I just want to be healthy and I hope that the weight gain isn't a consequence of some underlying health condition.

What do you think it may be? I fear if I go to a doctor with this concern, I might be laughed off! So I just wanted to get advice here, and see if making any healthy changes helps with this.

PS. I hit my 30s recently, so yeah age could be a factor? Don't quite know.

Hi everyone, I’m doing a research project on the correlation between eye floaters and psychological distress. I would really appreciate it if you could fill out this survey. It should take 5 minutes to complete.

Link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeUsQ0zR7h0Kgi5DY8eLTcJEu-JZJ_-r1fC3xOhubfOjIU4Zw/viewform?usp=sharing

My mom was cleaning my ears, she said there was some deep in my ear. So, she went in with the q-tip and I felt a huge strike of sudden pain in my ear, which made me curse her and pull away. She got mad and said I have to be nicer, which I don’t blame her, but that hurt for fucks sake! Now my ear is still clogged and really hurts. I also can’t hear well out of it.

1. How can I get the earwax out without a q-tip?
2. Why does my ear really hurt after that?

Edit: I think I might have punctured my eardrum or something cus’ it’s not going away—the pain I mean.

My girlfriend has these mental confusion episodes every few months, where she will suddenly experience difficulty in building meaningful sentences, if questioned at the end of a sentence she will not know what she was talking about.

She usually also feels a bit lightheaded and muscle weakness. I've noticed her hands have these tiny spasms, which is something that I've noticed usually happens in her sleep.

Most of the times she's not even moving, I remember it happening once while sitting in the car, and today while she was laying in bed with me.

The way she talks reminds me of me when I wake up to someone talking to me and I kind of reply to my own dreams. The fact that she also experiences muscle weakness and the hand spasms, associated with her very irregular/light sleep, makes me think this could be some form of narcolepsy. Could I be correct? She refuses to go to the doctor about this.

I woke up on a sunday feeling very weak and with a very big head pain so i went to the emergency cause it was late at night. I got an antibiotic injection to the buttocks on the right side which hurt a lot and they told me to come the next day to my main doctor for them to take a blood sample from my finger. The results were normal but had a big problem with temperature rising up a lot every few hours so they prescribed me another 3 antibiotic injections. Yesterday i took 1 on the left side and it hurt a little but when i woke up today i had a lot of pain in my buttocks. I told this to the doctor and she said some antibiotic injections hurt more then others. Is this possible?

Hi all,

Every once in a while (maybe once or twice a month) I get a sharp pain in my chest. I’ve been to my physician and the ER, where they did some tests and said it’s just intercostal muscle pain, ie. the muscles between my ribs are slightly inflamed or sore. There’s apparently no reason for this, no way to prevent it, and nothing to do except take some pain meds and wait it out.

I’m wondering if anyone else experiences this? And if so how do you deal with it? Pain meds don’t help and I’ve lost many a nights sleep because of it.

Bit of a long story here,

I am 23M and I have severe phimosis, I can't even see the head of my penis, can't pull the foreskin down at all. So for the past year I used to masturbate a lot and after that out of fear of getting some infection I used to wash the area with whatever soap/liquid soap (diluted) I could get

So 2 months ago I think after masturbating I fell asleep without cleaning up and next morning I woke up to some bump on my foreskin and started freakin out that it might be cancerous as I read about penile cancer online but it went away within a week but since I suffer from severe health related OCD I didn't want the issue to reoccurs and obsessively started washing the area with diluted soap or antiseptics whenever I felt it was a bit uncomfortable down there

So after doing this for a week, my penis started feeling dry, raw and inflammed so I stopped with the obsessive washing and fast forward 2 months later my condition has improved significantly but still on the right side of my penis there was a spot (I can't see since I have phimosis) that felt significantly sensitive and I felt it had become tight and irritated and out of my health related OCD I used to touch the spot many many times a day

So I thought me touching it might be aggravating the whole issue, so I stopped touching it and the sensitivity went down significantly but still the area feels tight and hard especially when I try to clench my muscles down there (and mind you I have an obsessive habit of doing it 😞) and sometimes especially after I take a piss it feels irritated . It also feels irritated when I am out doing some physical activity. Sometimes I feel kind of a pulling/pushing pressure on the spot and it also feels numb

So I checked the liquid soap I usually use for washing it (I may have used it for 4-5 months)and I was shocked to see some ingredient that on googling says it can be highly carcinogenic it it combines with other ingredients

So yes the sensitivity has gone down significantly but I the area still feels irritated,hard and swollen at times. But then suddenly it goes back to feeling normal. I am really tired of this and don't know what's happening and I am really living with anxiety and depression for the past 2 months

I also had visited a urologist who examined the area and said that since my foreskin couldn't come down he can't see what's exactly present in the area but he said penile cancer is rare and in a young guy like me it's very uncommon

But I still feel there is a cancerous tumor deep under my skin which is causing the irritation

Plz help😞

Hello, i have a lump in my neck from an injury, i wanna ask for some help to hopefully get rid of this lump. We don't know what this is nor don't knoq how to get rid of this. Thank you so much to whoever helps, i have pictures if anyones willing to help. Thank you