I talk a lot.  It’s one of my better qualities for working at a daycare.  But with everything I do–having an active job, running around at work and in class, going to school where very few people know me, working out, and everything else that comes with just living your life, not everybody knows your life story.  And i’ve taken CPR enough times and know enough EMTs to know that in an emergency, knowing your story can make a huge difference.

Especially when you can’t talk.

For that reason, I’ve worn a medical ID bracelet of sorts since my asthma moved beyond two inhalers.  Simply, it stated my name, asthma, organ donor and an emergency contact phone number.  Which in reality is all that is necessary in an emergency anyway.  I haven’t ever gotten to that point yet, and I very much hope and pray I never do.  But asthma is a strange disease, and you just never know.

Here’s where the dumb part came in.  All too frequently when I’m out, nobody is at the contact phone number on my bracelet.  And if they were, I have doubts either of my parents would be able to share the names of the medications I’m on–I don’t blame them at all.  Some days I forget.  And sometimes, they’re away from home for a week or two at a time, rendering contacting anybody useless until I’m able to tell people what’s up.  No bueno if I happen to get sick.  So after pondering this realization for two out of four weeks in July as I ran amok at work with my parents out at Lake No Man’s Land with barely any phone service, I realized the too-frequent semi-uselessness of my ID bracelet.

In August, I made the move to MedicAlert.  My bracelets give the hotline phone number, my member number and read ASTHMA, ORGAN DONOR.  My file advises medical personnel of my medications and my retinopathy.  If anything happens, MedicAlert will notify my family, and I can update the contact numbers on my file as-necessary.  Whether I’m around home, or around the world, regardless of whether where I am speaks English or not, MedicAlert covers the details in translation, I’m protected.  Probably over-protected.  It’s like why people buy insurance, they hope to never, ever need it, but they have it just in case.

I got my first plain ol’ “designer” stainless steel bracelet a couple weeks ago, right before I went to Chicago — perfect timing.

Yesterday, my sport bands [or sportybands as Natasha and I have been calling them!] came.  The other is just plain black.

So, maybe I’m over protected, but at least whatever and whereer life takes me . . . I’m ready.