Good Riddance — Time to Shed Those Bad 2007 Health Challenges!

I found a photo in my morning newspaper of a man throwing paperwork into a shredding bin in Times Square in New York City. The caption tells about Good Riddance Day. A huge, industrial-sized paper shredder was set up, and the public was invited to shred their bad memories of 2007 — to tell those memories and those events, Good Riddance!

People came from near and far to shred all sorts of documents. One woman threw a photo of her ex-fiancé and his new girlfriend into the shredder. A man threw in his paid-off mortgage paperwork. Dozens wrote down wishes and reminders on pieces of paper, then threw those in. Included were “the obsession to drink beer,” and “getting bad grades on my report card.”

Germane to this blog, however, was the gentleman who threw a photo of his appendix into the shredding bin. It was removed while he was vacationing in May this year. Along with the photo went his medical bills.

So it begs the question: do you have any health or medical memories YOU would like to get rid of from 2007? What sorts of health challenges have you suffered this year that you would like to say Good Riddance to?

We’re picking up the conversation in the About.com Patient Empowerment Forum. Please join us!