h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Entry: The Cervical Traction Kit - A33349313
Author: Icy North - U225620

Fizzymouse asked me to describe a home traction kit I once used to treat a neck condition. I thought I'd submit it here, so you can decide whether it's EG material (if not, then I'll put it in the Post).

Comments and suggestions welcome - medical opinions, particularly.

Icy

We want AV for this one.

I agree with B'el

The very first sentence is clouded in mystery:

>> when you learn that cervix is also Latin for 'neck' [And not just the neck of the uterus.],<<
Well, the neck as in just below the head was what sprung first to my mind when reading 'cervical' (And yes, that brought up some tears - I first thought it was a torturing device!)

>> you begin to understand why this medical device might be necessary, and also why men may need it too.<<
Why would men not need it? Everybody's got a neck. I don't understand what you mean here.

Apart from that it was quite nice to read. Well, suave mari magno, as they say

>> Your neck pain is gone, but this Researcher found it often returned a few hours later. <<

*Often*? You mean... you did it *more than once*? Sounds scary!

Thanks TB

I had always associated the word 'cervical' with the neck of the uterus (cervical smear, cervical cancer, etc) - hence the opening sentence. What do others think?



Yes, I think I was in it for an hour a day for a couple of weeks (or something like that).

Looks good to me. Although you've managed to make me think of people with giraffe like necks and by reading >>The title is sure to bring tears to the eyes...also why men may need it too.<< you've made me feel a bit

Thanks Opti.

I don't want anyone to feel , so feel free to suggest any improvements.

>>you've managed to make me think of people with giraffe like necks <<

It's not only me then.

In my opinion I would not make that sentence gender specific.

What would you suggest, in that case?

Or should I just remove the whole sentence?

just remove 'and also why men may need it too' and it will look better, but thats only my opinion.

Done, thanks!

Ah, I think the confusion arose because we don't really have the same confusion in French. 'Cervical' is really just related to the non-gender-specific sort (well, for ordinary people at least - medical staff speaks a bit weirdly sometimes).



I can't believe there's no Entry about Modigliani

No problem

Almost as funny as the first draft.


I liked reading about it - not so sure I'd like doing it - but that could apply to quite a lot of things.


Hopefully these things aren't available at your average DIY store and can only be supplied by a Physiotherapist or other professional torturer.

I'd say the title might bring tears to the female eye, but men, self-centred bastars to a man, only know about their own neck and will probably not make the connection at all.

My neck is now aching.

Well, for non-native English speakers 'cervical' might not bring up the same images. They may still be quite vivid, but not quite what the author meant.

I thought this Entry would also have some placebo effect, no? Read it again McKay, and see if you don't feel suddenly good enough not to need neck traction

Just one question: what does a patient do if they don't have a partner?

The physician should advise on all these matters, really. The design of kits could vary. I was just commenting on my experience, which was quite a few years ago. I did manage to get myself into it once or twice, but I probably shouldn't have attempted it.

I have a lot of neck pain (fibro fasciitis) and I wouldn't dare attempt this myself, I'd probably allow some medical person to do it in a clinic though. Did it help you in the long term? Or just give some pain relief for a little while?

I'm not convinced it helped me, to be honest, but it must work for some, or they wouldn't still be prescribing it.