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I can\u2019t remember my dad ever taking a sick day.<\/p>\n
With a wife and four children and making less than $40,000 a year managing a chain seafood restaurant, it makes sense that he might have felt like he couldn\u2019t. The long hours and grueling schedule would have made it seemingly impossible.<\/p>\n
Editor\u2019s Note<\/strong><\/p>\n Disconnected<\/em> is a series about economic segregation in San Antonio.<\/p>\n The series debuts a new story every Monday and looks at economic segregation through the lens of the major beats the Rivard Report<\/em> covers. The goal was to create a human-centric look at one of the city\u2019s biggest problems.<\/p>\n For more information on why we chose this project or to catch up on any missed stories, visit the Disconnected<\/em> home page.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n But my dad needed to take sick days. And he needed to go to a doctor. Given a choice, he did neither. Even after the onset of a flaky, reddish-purple rash that started at his shins and slowly crept up his legs, he still didn\u2019t make his health a priority and saw a doctor only when my mom\u2019s prodding became too persistent to ignore. <\/p>\n By the time he made it to a doctor\u2019s office and learned he had high blood pressure and high cholesterol, we were a one-income family that couldn\u2019t afford a potential onslaught of medical bills or a prescription medication regimen. It was easier \u2013 and cheaper \u2014 for my dad to pretend nothing was wrong \u2013 until he suffered a catastrophic illness. <\/p>\n My dad\u2019s seeming lack of interest in his health is both easy and difficult for me to understand. I was the first in my family to earn a college degree \u2013 and went on to earn a master\u2019s degree in mental health counseling. For the past two and a half years, I have reported on health topics for the Rivard Report<\/em>, so I see my own health and that of the community differently than most people, including most of my own family members.<\/p>\n My perspective allows me to <\/strong>understand how lifestyle choices and the state of health care influence San Antonio\u2019s profile as a city with the highest poverty rate among the 25 largest metros in the United States and a population overrun with obesity, Type 2 diabetes, stroke, and a host of lesser afflictions. <\/p>\n Despite my dad\u2019s poor diet, <\/strong>lack of exercise, and smoking habit, he lived most of his life without serious health complications. But in 2017, at age 60, my dad had a massive stroke. The cumulative effect of him not taking care of his health created an array of problems that have irreparably affected <\/strong>him and the rest of our family. <\/p>\n Before my dad got sick, he seemed to approach health concerns from an \u201cI\u2019d rather not know\u201d standpoint. It\u2019s scary to go to the doctor. It\u2019s scary to receive a large medical bill and wonder how you\u2019re going to pay for it. And it\u2019s daunting to take time off from your job when you need the money. It\u2019s a perfect storm for chronic health problems.<\/p>\n In San Antonio, 32 percent of adults were diagnosed with high blood pressure and high cholesterol, and 35 percent were obese, according to the most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.<\/p>\n<\/aside>\n