The Medical Merry-Go-Round and Round

Sometimes no results are good results and vice versa

Over the past few weeks I’ve experienced a medical anomaly or two—nothing unusual in the aging process, however.

1                I experienced a minor TIA (transient ischemic attack) or mini stroke. My left side went weak and numb for a couple of minutes. Then everything was back to normal again. I chomped a couple aspirin and made an appointment with my doctor who then sent me to a hospital for further tests.

  2                The next day I had a couple of dizzy spells and that has continued for several weeks, although somewhat diminished. So the doctor also scheduled me to see an ENT (Ear, Nose, and Throat specialist).

  3                At the hospital they first did an ultrasound to see if my carotid arteries might be blocked. Nope. Then came the MRI of my head. The report (several days later) said, “We looked at his brain and found nothing.” That confirms the common consensus of my intellectual standing.

4                A few days later I saw the ENT, got probed, had a long tube inserted up my nose, and even got a hearing test. Nothing explained the dizziness, sorry, and good-bye.

So in conclusion; events happened, medical tests occurred, reports were written, and everything remained pretty much the same. That’s good, I guess.

axman

More Side Effects of Aging

It’s not fair and it never ends, but I haven’t found a reasonable alternative...yet

I’m only half joking when I tell friends and family that life has several clearly identifiable stages.

          Stage one – You live and slow down gracefully from birth to age 60.

          Stage two – You age as much between 60 and 70 as you did from zero to 60.

          Stage three – The jury is still out.

It’s the truth. At a youthful 60 I could still run ultra marathons, work 16 hour days, and keep up with the grandkids. Not so at an ancient 70. Between the medical side effects from my prostate cancer meds and the inevitable side effects of physical aging the changes are clearly evident to me (and probably everybody else, too).

Slowing down, taking it easy, and enjoying life really sounds good—actually doing it has been a lot more difficult that it sounds. I’m working on it. But there are so many things needing to be done and watching somebody else doing them (instead of me) just doesn’t feel right. Being a useless old man is not something on my Bucket List. My wife nods and smiles whenever I say it, however.

Stay tuned—I’ll chart my progress, or lack thereof, toward the good if not the useful life. But now it’s time to take my pills and then my nap.

axman

Weather or Not, That is the Question

La Nina, El Nino, Global Warming, Climate Change, and infernal rain

As a wee child I remember being amused when all the old folks sat around and cursed the weather (too wet, too hot, too dry, too windy, or too something else). The physical complaint of the day was rheumatism. Now I find myself doing the same thing, and worse yet my mental and physical health seem to wax and wane according to the temperature and precipitation. Rheumatism is no longer at the top of the list, but the process hasn’t changed. I have become my parents and grandparents. I’m not sure this is all bad but, like many people I know, I didn’t think it would ever happen to me.

I am sure that weather and climate don’t have all that much to do with my health and happiness but sometimes it sure seems that way. Once the weather changes I’ll be one of those complaining about 90 degree days, sunburn, and heatstroke (probably). Maybe I need to stay busier or get more creative or just get a life.

You’ve probably seen the research that points out how people are more depressed in the winter and drink more alcohol where the winter is longer. People generally live longer in warmer climates (I think diet and lifestyle may factor in there, too) and sunshine helps create Vitamin D3 that is supposedly good for all of us (what’s good or not good for us seems to change on a regular basis so don’t count too heavily on D3 forever). I can remember when large amounts selenium, iron, and vitamin C were also supposed to be good for you. And chocolate and coffee and wine were bad. We can all count on change.

So I’ll try to ignore the weather (pretend like it's warm and sunny), eat what seems to be good for me (or what I really like), and carry on as if the universe was unfolding as it should.

 axman