No More Travels!

First of all, I'd like to wish everyone a happy holiday, however and whatever you celebrate.

Thanks to you folks for all the comments to my post about rising blood pressure. I would like to make a comment on the drug store blood pressure machines. My blood pressure was very low all my life, until about 2007. I was waiting on a prescription in a local pharmacy and to while away some time I sat down at the bp machine. I was shocked to find my pressure was so high. On my way home I went into the grocery store across the street and back to their pharmacy to another machine. It gave me the same story.

I then phoned my doctor's office and asked if I could stop in to get my bp taken, and of course they said it would be ok. (My doctor's office was about 4 miles from my house and much easier than getting to my doctor here in Sacramento.) The nurse found my blood pressure to be even higher than the drug store machines had clocked it, and set up an appointment for me to see the doctor first thing the next morning, as she was out of the office when I arrived. So it was the drug store machine that led me to find out my blood pressure was high, and I had no other symptoms that would have alerted me to the fact. If I hadn't sat down at that machine I could have eventually suffered a stroke or heart attack.

This time I have noticed several little things that have made me wonder, and that is why I have made two trips to the Raley's machine. At home I've been using a wrist cuff and the numbers are way low, but I don't trust that it is accurate. I will definitely take the home BP monitor in to the office with me. I have an appointment to see my doctor on January 5, but I'm not waiting until then to go back to my medication. I'm also using the messaging system they have for letting the dr. know in advance.

What really bums me out is that the weight I thought I was gaining will probably turn out to have been a build up of fluid, and will be flushed away within a day or two. I give up on the weight issue.