I get these flashes of insight sometimes. It's weird. Kind of like all the sudden I see things very clearly. Problem is that unless I document it when it happens, I forget exactly how all of whatever I flashed on went together. :P I got lucky though, and I had this flash of insight earlier and I remember how most of it went. It was about the sad fact that in the year 2006, women are still second class citizens. What hit it home for me was when I was reading an article about a new birth control pill that would eliminate periods. Yup. Totally eliminate that monthly curse. Why in the world do you think this would have pointed out that women are second class citizens to me? Easy. They are trying to get FDA approval for a birth control pill that will eliminate a woman's menstrual cycle while viagra, the pill to allow men with erectile dysfunction get an erection, has been on the market for years. Now I'm sorry, but I believe that with all the problems women have had from their periods like cramps, PMS, bloating, headaches, even anemia are things that should have been addressed LONG before the fact that some 50 yr old guy with adult kids can't get it up anymore. I, personally, have had problems for years. I have had cramps so bad they made me throw up. Back before you could buy motrin over the counter, they prescribed me motrin. The lovely thing about that was that the cramps made me sick. And the motrin made me sick if I didn't eat before taking it. Classic catch 22. I am sure all the guys reading this are getting nauseous, but get over it. If men had to have even just one period, a bad one with horrible cramps, water retention, awful bloating, passing clots, etc. I'm sure the FDA would have received an application for this medication YEARS ago. It's kind of like when I go to the doctor and say I have a yeast infection and he says Monistat. I'm sorry, but any woman who has ever had a yeast infection knows how badly it can itch and burn and how disgusting it is to have to use a cream or vaginal supository for 3 to 7 days to clear one up. I won't describe it here (so as not to offend men's delicate sensibilities more than necessary) but it's gross to say the least. Now can anybody tell me why I should go buy that junk rather than my doctor writing me a script for a diflucan pill? One pill. No creams or suppositories. Just a pill. It boggles the mind. But my doctor baffles me anyway. To me it just doesn't make sense not to write me a script for the pill so I can take it and be done with it. I haven't decided if this is a man thing or a doctor thing or it's just MY doctor. God knows I've been complaining to my doctor for years about the severe cramps, mood swings, headaches, etc. I have HORRIBLE periods sometimes. His response? I just have to live with it. So I've quit asking. I have degenerative arthritis in my back and he doesn't want to prescribe me anything for it. This leads me to believe I need a new doctor, one who isn't a sadist. I'm kind of of the opinion that there's not really a good reason for me to be in pain all the time. Imagine that. Sometimes I almost wish I could break my leg or something just so I could get temporary relief from the pain I live with on a daily basis when they medicate me for the break. But then I remember that it would hurt like hell to begin with and that my pain level isn't that bad yet so...