June 2022

Dear Dr. Roach: I am an 81-year-old male with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease. During the night I have pain in my thighs and feet. I’ve been taking two extra-strength acetaminophen (Tylenol) nightly for the past year, as my doctors and nurses who give me flu and COVID shots say it is safe to take for pain. One of the side effects of CMT is hearing loss. I wear two hearing aids, and without them am deaf. This week I read an article saying several studies show that people who use acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Advil) twice a week are up to 24% more likely to develop hearing loss than people who use them less frequently. Their expert says continued use of these meds at a high dose can result in permanent hearing loss or tinnitus. Am I risking permanent hearing loss by using acetaminophen nightly? I stopped taking it, but have trouble sleeping when I have pain. Is there a safe alternative for pain?

Dear Abby: I come from a nice family. My siblings are thoughtful and kind, but one of my brothers is a conversational narcissist. He drones on for hours (if we let him) without asking a single question to engage another person.

We gardeners spend so much time stressing over what our plants need that we often forget they grew just fine for millennia without us. Suppose we step back from our self-aggrandizing human nature and take our cues from actual nature instead?

Dear Neil: I have weeds that have extremely deep roots growing in my lawn. I prefer not to use chemicals.