I'm not bored, I could write about me all day. But why are you still reading? Is it late? Have you been drinking? I will admit, at times it is difficult for me to understand the blogosphere. Maybe I should have a blogoscomy.
Be that as it may....
An earlier post mentioned the change in prescription medications in November, along with a change in specialists. Here is the whole story.
Specialist #1 was one swell fella. We got along fine, he was knowledgable about the Chinese herbal treatments and approved of them (as long as they continued to work), and he wore the most-in-need-of-a-wash labcoat I'd ever seen. He saw me on October 4, 2006, and felt I needed significantly more medication (sigh) and much more time off work (okay!). I saw him again three weeks later, at the end of October. At which time, we said good-bye because he was moving to Alberta.
Alberta is not a shampoo company, but another province in Canada.
I don't think he moved because of something I said. He was going up in the world, to a University position, and more power to him!
This meant proceeding to another specialist. My family doctor was fine, but I wanted a physician who lived, breathed, ate and was obsessed by Hypertension. Well, okay, also a specialist because my employer would not be all that interested in a family doctor's recommendations. Specialists carry more weight. I knew that from my work.
He recommended, at my request, another specialist, who was in the Adult Cardiac unit of a local hospital. It took several weeks for the appointment, in part because first my family doctor had to make the referral--that is how the system works. Civilians can not just phone up and make the appointment on their own.
The weeks went by. Down to the hospital I went, where I registered and actually was given a white plastic wrist band for while I was there. Then I went up to the unit, waited a relatively short time, and was called into a waiting room. Where, of course, I waited.
Not for long. A nurse came in, took my blood pressure, interviewed me, and then said the doctor would come in. A few minuts later, a quite nice student doctor came in. He explained he was a student, or intern, or resident, or at least "not quite" a full doctor. He was very efficient, to the point of being brusque: but very politely brusque. This is Canada, after all. He took my blood pressure again, examined me, asked more questions. Then he explained he would leave, review everything with the specialist, and they would both come back in.
I was absolutely wallowing in attention.
A short time later the student and the specialist came back in. The specialist asked some more questions. He reviewed the side effects which I had mentioned to the nurse and intern. He asked the intern what changes should be made. The intern suggested increasing the Tevetin. The specialist said no, that would increase the negative side effects. It went back and forth like that for a little while. I commented to them it was like being in an episode of "House", and we all had a rather jolly laugh.
Eventually the specialist changed the caduet I had been prescribed, giving me two new prescription drugs instead, adalat and lipitor (which I had heard on from the relentless tv ads). He said the new combination should help with the feelings of weakness. He recommended continuing exercising. Regarding dieting, he had no recommendation to my query about the circular nature of feeling weak so I ate more, except to note the new medications should leave me less weak, so that should certainly help.
He was quite done when I noted to him my last concern. In a couple of months, after continued exercise, dieting and adjusting to yet more new medications, I would return to work. My concern was that the stressful nature of my work would bop up my blood pressure again as soon as I returned. To my surprise--stress and high blood pressure are controversial, at least for employers and their human resource departments--he and the intern completely agreed, and said they would write a letter to my union, recommending I be given less stressful work on my return.
For the first time in a long long time: really good news!
Showing posts with label Teveten Plus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Teveten Plus. Show all posts
Thursday, December 07, 2006
Friday, December 01, 2006
Hypertension 16: My Favourite Prescription Medication Story
Now I was off work for several months, to adjust to the new medications, to start exercising, change my diet, and quiet down the stress in my life. The new medications came in two pills. Don’t ask for details, I avoid knowing, but there was a calcium blocker, the adrenalin stopper, a diuretic, and a cholesterol stepper-onner.
Those two pills were powerful stuff. They led to my favourite prescription medication story:
None of these medications make you hallucinate. The side effects are not always obvious. At first, I did not think the new meds had a big negative impact on me. Sure, I was feeling much more tired. I needed a nap by 11 am. It was not a preference!
I did feel a bit “out of it”, but thought I had everything, as my mom would say, “under control. True, I drove through a stop sign or two before I realized I had to work much harder at focusing when driving. I guess it was that “don’t use farm machinery” kinda situation in the warnings list on the box. But what did that matter if I did not live on a farm?
Two weeks later, in mid-October, my Cousin Lewis flew into Winnipeg from New York. I agreed to pick him up at the airport. Given I was now off work, I had plenty of time to organize myself. And organize it I did! Let me tell you, I was one on top of it puppy!
Gas in the car. Front door locked. Dog pees in the back yard before getting in the car. I even cleaned out the usual collection of newspapers, fast food wrappers and general garbage from the station wagon. Got the Shitzhu into the car. I even remembered to bring her leash. Left the house with plenty o’ time to spare. I drove to the airport without incident, stopping at every red light and only going through green lights. At the airport, I parked properly.
Proud of myself, I put Willow the dog on her leash and went into the terminal early. I was there early. Cousin Lewis had not yet arrived, so I was there to greet him as he came down the escalator. Helped him get his bag. Could it have been more perfect?
And it was, only I discovered in the parking lot that:
a) the car doors were unlocked
b) the car key was in the ignition
c) the car engine was still running
Now, I'm 61. I've been driving a long time. This was a first. I have never parked the car and left it unintentionally unlocked. I’ve never left the keys in the ignition. And I sure had never before left the motor running.
Luckily this was Winnipeg, so nobody stole the car (Canada can be like that).
I was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. We are trained in New York, from the earliest possible age, to lock everything. Leaving the car like that went against my entire cultural heritage. Leaving the doors unlocked was bad enough...but leaving the engine running? If I had done that at New York's JFK, not only would my car have been stolen, but before stealing it any responsible New York thief would have sought me out in the terminal and beaten me up for being so stupid!!!
I had thought I was on top of everything. The reality was the opposite.
Those two pills were powerful stuff. They led to my favourite prescription medication story:
None of these medications make you hallucinate. The side effects are not always obvious. At first, I did not think the new meds had a big negative impact on me. Sure, I was feeling much more tired. I needed a nap by 11 am. It was not a preference!
I did feel a bit “out of it”, but thought I had everything, as my mom would say, “under control. True, I drove through a stop sign or two before I realized I had to work much harder at focusing when driving. I guess it was that “don’t use farm machinery” kinda situation in the warnings list on the box. But what did that matter if I did not live on a farm?
Two weeks later, in mid-October, my Cousin Lewis flew into Winnipeg from New York. I agreed to pick him up at the airport. Given I was now off work, I had plenty of time to organize myself. And organize it I did! Let me tell you, I was one on top of it puppy!
Gas in the car. Front door locked. Dog pees in the back yard before getting in the car. I even cleaned out the usual collection of newspapers, fast food wrappers and general garbage from the station wagon. Got the Shitzhu into the car. I even remembered to bring her leash. Left the house with plenty o’ time to spare. I drove to the airport without incident, stopping at every red light and only going through green lights. At the airport, I parked properly.
Proud of myself, I put Willow the dog on her leash and went into the terminal early. I was there early. Cousin Lewis had not yet arrived, so I was there to greet him as he came down the escalator. Helped him get his bag. Could it have been more perfect?
And it was, only I discovered in the parking lot that:
a) the car doors were unlocked
b) the car key was in the ignition
c) the car engine was still running
Now, I'm 61. I've been driving a long time. This was a first. I have never parked the car and left it unintentionally unlocked. I’ve never left the keys in the ignition. And I sure had never before left the motor running.
Luckily this was Winnipeg, so nobody stole the car (Canada can be like that).
I was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. We are trained in New York, from the earliest possible age, to lock everything. Leaving the car like that went against my entire cultural heritage. Leaving the doors unlocked was bad enough...but leaving the engine running? If I had done that at New York's JFK, not only would my car have been stolen, but before stealing it any responsible New York thief would have sought me out in the terminal and beaten me up for being so stupid!!!
I had thought I was on top of everything. The reality was the opposite.
Saturday, November 25, 2006
Hypertension 13: Back to Square One
Up until late August, 2006, my Western specialist had accepted the herbal treatments--they were working. But, for whatever reason, they stopped working. Perhaps I had grown resistant to the herbs and required stronger ones. Perhaps none of them would work any longer. The Chinese doctor wanted to try stronger ones. But there was a problem.
Chinese medical treatments for Hypertension are not recognized by Canada’s socialized medical system. They are also not recognized by my private insurer, through work. And they appeared to carry little or no weight with my employer, either. I had developed problems at work due to the side effects of the medications I had been taking. I’d slowed down, had memory problems, was cranky.
I needed treatments that the “mainstream” would recognize. And, of course, treatments that would work quickly.
My Western specialist, who had supported the Chinese treatments until they stopped working, was the key player. He was concerned that my blood pressure readings placed me at Stage 3 Hypertension. He recommended I start back on prescription medications, and he did not say it in a way I thought I could ignore or even question.
So in late August he looked at my higher readings, and started me on a new prescription medication. That medication, in lay terms, blocks the reception of adrenalin by my blood vessels. My understanding was that when I got stressed out my adrenalin production increased, which in turn increased my blood pressure. Stress in my life, including at work, was a factor.
The specialist suggested at the same time that I consider a two week trial from work, to see if being in a less stressful environment would help. I had refused taking any time off work as I was concerned about what my employer would think. My work? Let's just say that I am a civil servant, and for 19 years have been an investigator—a professionally suspicious person. Pretty much anyone who was been in a 'front line' job will tell you that it direct service can be stressful. In my line of work someone always was angry—you had to decide if someone was right or wrong, and that left one side or the other upset.
As a Golden Employment Rule, it is rarely a good idea to let any employer know you are unhappy in your work or that you are having difficulty doing the work. Especially these days, when production is everything.
But then I had to take a work-related seminar on a Monday. To avoid losing work time, I worked at home on the weekend—but my effort was not apparently recognized and the pressure continued. The workshop? Ironically, on managing work-related stress.
That was the point where I decided to take my specialist up on his recommendation to take two weeks off work and see if being away and being engaged in less stressful pursuits, would have an impact on my blood pressure. So off I went on two weeks' medical leave.
The specialist was now directly managing my treatment.
Chinese medical treatments for Hypertension are not recognized by Canada’s socialized medical system. They are also not recognized by my private insurer, through work. And they appeared to carry little or no weight with my employer, either. I had developed problems at work due to the side effects of the medications I had been taking. I’d slowed down, had memory problems, was cranky.
I needed treatments that the “mainstream” would recognize. And, of course, treatments that would work quickly.
My Western specialist, who had supported the Chinese treatments until they stopped working, was the key player. He was concerned that my blood pressure readings placed me at Stage 3 Hypertension. He recommended I start back on prescription medications, and he did not say it in a way I thought I could ignore or even question.
So in late August he looked at my higher readings, and started me on a new prescription medication. That medication, in lay terms, blocks the reception of adrenalin by my blood vessels. My understanding was that when I got stressed out my adrenalin production increased, which in turn increased my blood pressure. Stress in my life, including at work, was a factor.
The specialist suggested at the same time that I consider a two week trial from work, to see if being in a less stressful environment would help. I had refused taking any time off work as I was concerned about what my employer would think. My work? Let's just say that I am a civil servant, and for 19 years have been an investigator—a professionally suspicious person. Pretty much anyone who was been in a 'front line' job will tell you that it direct service can be stressful. In my line of work someone always was angry—you had to decide if someone was right or wrong, and that left one side or the other upset.
As a Golden Employment Rule, it is rarely a good idea to let any employer know you are unhappy in your work or that you are having difficulty doing the work. Especially these days, when production is everything.
But then I had to take a work-related seminar on a Monday. To avoid losing work time, I worked at home on the weekend—but my effort was not apparently recognized and the pressure continued. The workshop? Ironically, on managing work-related stress.
That was the point where I decided to take my specialist up on his recommendation to take two weeks off work and see if being away and being engaged in less stressful pursuits, would have an impact on my blood pressure. So off I went on two weeks' medical leave.
The specialist was now directly managing my treatment.
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