But I Feel Fine, Thank You

I try… god knows… I try to write about something… anything… other than the chaos and horribleness that’s emanating from D.C these days. Shit, I can’t go a day without hearing something even worse than just the day before. But, with supreme effort I’m determined to write on a different subject today.  

How about Disease, Health, and general Well-Being?  Warning… this post is all about me.

I’ve recently been diagnosed with heart disease. It hit me hard for a few days. Mortality looms. It’s one thing to think about mortality, to say you intellectually understand that we’re all going to die, and claim you’re a big enough person to deal with it with grace and aplomb… as long as it’s others we’re discussing.  But when it’s YOU!  When YOU’re thrust into the reality of the situation and the medical diagnosis, made by professionals who supposedly know what they’re doing, say “You have heart disease”, and we need to do something about this right now. When things move from the theoretical to the factual… Whoa! It’s quite another thing. And it took me some time to get my head wrapped around the idea. I suddenly felt older. Am I now one of those oldsters who seem to talk about little except their medical problems? I’ve got a lot to think about. I’ve got a lot to process. How ‘bout them Cubs?

I’ve been diagnosed with Hypertension all of my adult life. Various doctors, various medications, Nothing seemed to keep me in the “zone” of acceptable blood pressure readings. I’d find little workarounds. I noticed that after a half hour of moderate aerobic exercise, a brisk walk at 3.5 - 4.0 mph, I’d get BP readings that were acceptable or even on the low side of normal. But it wouldn’t stay there for long. At least a couple times I’d workout like that just before a doctor appointment in an effort to keep the doc from over-reacting. The games people play…

The update is that I have an appointment with a cardiologist in Eugene in a week or so. We’ll see what he/she has to say. The funny thing is that I don’t have any symptoms.  I’m not short of breath when I walk for extended periods of time. No pain anywhere… except my dang hands! But that’s another story. Blood oxygen levels are good. Blood labs are good… OK, maybe borderline cholesterol of one kind or another. At any rate, I feel normal. I feel really good like I always have. 

I promise not to make ME the subject of these Farts without good cause. And I have pretty much come to grips with the situation.  Yeah, how ‘bout them Cubs?