I used to worry, thought I was goin? mad in a hurry

Posted on March 24, 2006 by Adem
Hi all!!
As I?ve not been blogging much recently I thought I share with you what?s been going on in the world of Adem. Nothing too exciting really, just been as busy as ever although this week has started to calm down and I?ve got some holiday booked over Easter which will be nice.

I have been really busy for the past few weeks in all areas of my life with the Uni job, the Pub job, the logo/banner design job, and any other things that are going on in my life, and it was no surprise that when I had my blood pressure checked on Tuesday morning it was through the roof. I didn?t specifically go out to have it tested but we had a ?Health Promotion Bus? at Uni, and I thought it?d be worth squeezing it in. They took my reading and came out with the figures 150/115. I never really know what these figures mean [find out here] but apparently those are very high.

Normal is less than 120 over 80

Prehypertension is less than 120-139 over 80-89
High blood pressure Stage 1 is 140-159 over 90-99
High blood pressure Stage 2 is 160 or higher over 100 or higher.

I explained that I thought they?d be high as I?d been quite stressed and had been rushing around that morning and she handed me some leaflets and recommended that I go see my doctor and have it checked again as my readout was well over the 140/90 which indicates high blood pressure. [High blood pressure is dangerous because it makes the heart work too hard and contributes to hardening of the arteries, increases the risk of heart disease and stroke, and can also result in other conditions, such as congestive heart failure, kidney disease, and blindness.]

Luckily I had a finance meeting in Canterbury on the Wednesday and I found out they were doing health tests there too. It was a nice sunny day and I was quite chilled, so I had my blood pressure tested again and explained that I?d had it tested yesterday too, and my readout this time was 134/82. I was quite relieved. It?s still not as low as it should be and I should see it as a warning as it falls into the Prehypertension range, which means that I don?t have high blood pressure now but am likely to develop it in the future. If I can adopt a more healthy lifestyle then I can prevent this.

I think certain things like high blood pressure and high cholesterol are things that we put to the back of our mind as they are invisible qualities with little effect on us in the present. I?m glad that I?ve been able to quantify my blood pressure as it gives me a record of my health and has shown that if I don?t change a few things then I could be in big trouble.

Watch this space for more news.
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4 Responses to I used to worry, thought I was goin? mad in a hurry

  1. Flash says:
    March 24, 2006 at 12:57 pm

    What?s that?
    Can?t hear you?head in the sand you see.

    Reply
  2. adem says:
    March 24, 2006 at 1:23 pm

    Ignorance is bliss eh? And they ruin it when they tell you the truth.

    I?ll never have fun again!!!!

    Reply
  3. Ginny says:
    March 24, 2006 at 5:02 pm

    Its something you may well want to keep an eye on. Our pharmacies have blood pressure reading machines that you can use free of charge. The husband was having dizzy spells a few years ago and his bp was way up. It has gotten much better, but he still checks it occasionally at the pharmacy ? saves a trip to the doctor.

    Reply
  4. SwissToni says:
    March 24, 2006 at 11:19 pm

    holy shit dude.

    On the plus side, you?ve discovered this early, and it?s better to know it now than to discover it too late in thirty years time.

    Take it easy?..

    ST

    Reply

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