Back to Basics in My Fifties

Exercising for good health

I started this blog when I was in my mid thirty's and struggling with hypertension.  If you would rummage through my posts, you'd see that a lot of it are about my running escapades and then dabbling a bit on swimming.  Of course, what's a health blog without touching on nutrition and fitness in general?  I remember those DIY exercises that I actually do in the office when I had time to spare or when I was simply bored and want some physical activities.  I was so active back then.  I had goals to achieve.

Lipid Profile Update

Yesterday morning, as I was already at the top of the stairs going to the laboratory, that's the only time it hit me that I was going for a needle pricking session once again.  Getting used to it, I just took one deep breath and entered the room to see the phlebotomist again after just about two months.  Just to make sure, I reminded her again that it's me, the patient with the hard-to-locate veins.  I don't relish being poked by needles more than what was necessary.  Same as last January, she had to jab the needle where it really hurts, on a side vein.  I knew what to expect now so it wasn't that painful anymore.  After she inserted the needle, I even mustered enough courage to look as blood was flowing inside the syringe...my very own precious blood.  It was somewhat surreal, seeing a big needle enter my skin, pierce a vein, and see blood being drawn out.  Okay enough!  I'll spare you the gory details as I might be scaring someone who's about to have his or her blood extracted hahaha! 

Blood Chemistry Results

I have just gotten hold of the results of my blood chemistry test from yesterday.  It wasn't really a big surprise with the cholesterol values.  The holidays and all that "good" food has not been very forgiving to me.  I have shown here a comparison between the recent test and that of five months ago. The August result was almost okay except for the very low HDL value.  I understand that HDL is the good cholesterol so I am lacking something in my diet.  I must have overdone avoiding fatty foods.  The latest results however showed that I may have indulged myself over the holidays far more than my body could handle.  Take a look at the values.

I am not really that alarmed because the values merely went over the upper limit a little bit.  I feel confident that I could rectify that in a month's time by making healthier food choices and getting enough sleep.  Still, the doctor prescribed me with Atorvastatin from Pfizer and he gave me something to read, a little pamphlet titled  "Your Heart and Cholesterol.".  I am browsing over it right now.  It says there that an LDL value that falls within 130 - 159 mg/dl is already at the borderline high risk for heart disease.  And if the HDL value is less than 40 mg/dl, it is already considered high risk for heart disease.  Great!  I guess I should be alarmed after all.  Nah, I'm a lot tougher than that.  Numbers don't scare me that much unless they are glaringly over the norms.  For now, I've got to follow what the doctor says so off to the drug store once again.  Should I already avail of the Suki Card from Mercury Drug?  Just a thought....

Of Needles, Veins and Blood Samples

Lots of tape residue, a photo by Thirteen Of Clubs on Flickr.

Just looking at the picture above makes me cringe.  After all, it was just this morning that I had blood extracted from my right arm.  It's not the sight of blood that scares me.  What actually gives me the jitters is the thought of being pricked several times before any blood could be extracted from my hard-to-locate and fragile veins.  The bend in the arm, I presume is the best place to jab the needle because that's where they commonly make the punctures.  That's not the case with me.  This morning, the nurse or medical tech found a suitable vein not at the hollowed center part of the arm bend but somewhat to the side.  Before she even tied my arm with the tourniquet, I already told her it's not easy to locate my veins.  When she found that side vein, she said it's going to hurt.  Thank you for the warning.  I need to know what to expect.  Hahaha I suppose my blood pressure went up just hearing what she said.  So when she got ready to insert the needle, I looked away.  Before that unforgettable incident with an inexperienced med tech probably two years ago, I normally look at the needle being inserted and blood being drawn out.  Not this time though.  I just needed to get through with it.  

The lady wasn't kidding