Seeking advice on a health issue....

[O2Bfree]

I had one of those, very scary, I though I was stroking out.

I thought I was having a flashback!

 

[ivinsfan]

Doc ran a lot of blood work and did an EKG. The EKG came out ok so didn't see a need to do a stress test at this time. But if enzyme markers come back out of whack will then have me do one. He wasn't ready to chalk my problem up to vertigo but said it was possible. He is also setting up an appointment for me to see a neurologist which will probably lead to an MRI. Wants to eliminate a TIA as a possibility. Overall he is thinking I'm ok but that the blurriness justifies a further look see.

Guess my $10k ins deductible is finally going to bite me in the rump. Ha.

Have you thought of doing an appointment with your eye doctor first. My DN had a similar issue when she was around 35 and they never found a cause. But the neuro ran the MRI just to confirm his thought that she didn't have a problem. It came back negative and the neuro said, I was certain that would be the case. My DN who is very blunt looked at him and said "Thanks a lot you F$%*er you just cost me 5000 dollars.

 

[Rianne]

I'm forever skeptical of Dr., specialists, surgeons etc. ALERT this is me, please don't argue that I'm a bad person or don't know what I'm talking about. This is about my experiences. I had an MRI by one of the best cancer centers in Chicago suburbs after cancer Dx. The MRI results said it metastasized to my sternum, liver and other parts of my body. Long story short, this DX was completely wrong. Because of that MRI, I had multiple CT scans, bone scan and other tests, all came out negative. That was in 2011 and I've had no recurrence. While in oncologist office after all that sh-t, she said they saw spots on my lungs. Suggest another CT scan. Then she made a motion, without saying anything out loud, thumb and middle finger, like the "mo money" sign. I was furious but grateful to her. Honestly, sometimes the cure kills you.

 

[travelover]

My general feeling is that once you get past around 60, you need to take any medical issue a lot more seriously. At that point, we are biologically past our sell date. Granted, you may whiz away some money needlessly, but you are dealing with the one thing you can't replace. Having lived a life of health and vigor, it is hard to accept that that doesn't last forever.

 

[Dawg52]

Glad you are pursuing full diagnosis despite the $10K deductible...it hurts for sure hitting that! Aw well, we do what we gotta do. I thought for sure I wasn't going to hit my deductible again this year...nope...gotta have another surgery. Argh!

Aww now....hope it's minor stuff.

Have you thought of doing an appointment with your eye doctor first. My DN had a similar issue when she was around 35 and they never found a cause. But the neuro ran the MRI just to confirm his thought that she didn't have a problem. It came back negative and the neuro said, I was certain that would be the case. My DN who is very blunt looked at him and said "Thanks a lot you F$%*er you just cost me 5000 dollars.

Good tip. I might go hear what the nero guy has to say. If he waffles on whether I need one I might just tell him to hold up until after my eye appt. In fact I'm going to go ahead see about bumping it.

edit: got the eye appt for 8:30 tomorrow as they had a cancelation. Just bumping up the appt a month so might as will do it now.

 

[TwoByFour]

My general feeling is that once you get past around 60, you need to take any medical issue a lot more seriously. At that point, we are biologically past our sell date. Granted, you may whiz away some money needlessly, but you are dealing with the one thing you can't replace. Having lived a life of health and vigor, it is hard to accept that that doesn't last forever.

LOL. I take the opposite approach. I don't want to be doctored to death. I watched my mother go through 10 years of non-stop doctoring. It became her raison d'etre. So now I avoid docs like the plague. No flu shots, no check-ups. I hope to live a long time but if I do, I'll do it without being propped up by the medical industry, thank you very much. And if I don't live a long time, c'est la vie.

 

[travelover]

LOL. I take the opposite approach. I don't want to be doctored to death. I watched my mother go through 10 years of non-stop doctoring. It became her raison d'etre. So now I avoid docs like the plague. No flu shots, no check-ups. I hope to live a long time but if I do, I'll do it without being propped up by the medical industry, thank you very much. And if I don't live a long time, c'est la vie.

Sounds like you have a plan. Let us know how it works out.

 

[aja8888]

LOL. I take the opposite approach. I don't want to be doctored to death. I watched my mother go through 10 years of non-stop doctoring. It became her raison d'etre. So now I avoid docs like the plague. No flu shots, no check-ups. I hope to live a long time but if I do, I'll do it without being propped up by the medical industry, thank you very much. And if I don't live a long time, c'est la vie.

Maybe you are still pretty young and fairly healthy. But a simple annual blood test covering the main panels will go a long way in you beating the system. Think about it.

 

[TwoByFour]

Maybe you are still pretty young and fairly healthy. But a simple annual blood test covering the main panels will go a long way in you beating the system. Think about it.

That is a slippery slope - first just a test than they find something a little off than more tests and on and on. The medical industry over-manages, over-treats, and over-tests us. I think it is out of control and people have let it take control over their lives, living in fear of dying.

There was an interesting article in the AARP magazine recently, written by a microbiologist researcher, who is 72 or so. She was advocating this same thing and she is in the business. She has completely stopped seeing doctors.

I personally find it liberating. I might die of cancer or something when I am 75 but at least I have regained my humanness, accepting that life is not risk free.

BTW, I am 67.

 

[HI Bill]

That is a slippery slope - first just a test than they find something a little off than more tests and on and on. The medical industry over-manages, over-treats, and over-tests us. I think it is out of control and people have let it take control over their lives, living in fear of dying.

There was an interesting article in the AARP magazine recently, written by a microbiologist researcher, who is 72 or so. She was advocating this same thing and she is in the business. She has completely stopped seeing doctors.

I personally find it liberating. I might die of cancer or something when I am 75 but at least I have regained my humanness, accepting that life is not risk free.

BTW, I am 67.

I had jaundice (yellow eyes), and had a blood test. They said my liver was failing. They ordered a CT scan. They found I had a tumor on my prostate, and an unbilical hernia. Then I had procedures to test for cancer, inlcuding two probes that went into places you don't want them to go. And needles that poked through the colon, repeatedly, into the prostate. Which is sensitive. Then I had an MRI. Altogether, at age 47, I had multiple thousands in tests, which resulted in 'incidental' finds, and additional tests. Although the cause was never determined, my liver returned to normal before all of the testing was done.

There are certain things you can, and perhaps, should do, to remain healthy, and live a reasonably long life. But after 70, I agree that the benefits of over-testing are outweighed by the costs and inconvenience. They recently stopped testing men for prostate cancer after a certain age, as it's rarely fatal, and after that age, you're likely to die of something else

Just thoughts.

 

[redduck]

Time for annual blood work and a flu shot anyway.

The flu shot may need to be delayed.

 

[NW-Bound]

About 8 years ago, I was at work and my vision not only got blurry but a flash of bright lights and spinning dots. I immediately thought retina detachment...

Retina detachment is no joke, as it can result in blindness. I would rush to ER as you did.

Recently, I had floaters in one eye. Did not think it was serious and an emergency, but made an appointment to see an ophthalmologist just in case. He looked and said it might go away by itself. And it did. Just another thing that happens with aging.

"You know you are old when everything hurts. What does not hurt does not work" -- Anon.

 

[HFWR]

I thought I was having a flashback!

According to Norm MacDonald, flashbacks are just a conspiracy perpetrated by Big Acid...

My general feeling is that once you get past around 60, you need to take any medical issue a lot more seriously. At that point, we are biologically past our sell date. Granted, you may whiz away some money needlessly, but you are dealing with the one thing you can't replace. Having lived a life of health and vigor, it is hard to accept that that doesn't last forever.

+1

But I’m not a passive patient!

 

[Teacher Terry]

2x4, I read a book written by a doctor and she has taken a similar approach. KI have numerous chronic conditions so see my doctor once/year and have yearly blood work. I have been rethinking some tests. I only only do mammograms every 2 years and have had one colonoscopy at age 53. Now 64 and will do one more close to 70 and then done. However, if I had ignored my symptoms at age 50 I would be dead by now.

 

[Dawg52]

Had my annual eye exam today. Pushed it up due to events of the week. Everything pretty much the same although eye pressure up a bit. Still within normal range but he decided to prescribe nightly eye drops to control pressure. He's had me classified as a preglaucoma candidate for a while. Didn't see anything that should have caused my blurriness early in the week. He said it sounded like a cardiac event and he would do a stress test even if blood work came out ok. That advice was free.

Will get back with regular doc early next week to see where we go from here. I did get some lab work via email and everything looked within the normal range from their suggested levels. But not sure if everything was included in email.

 

[slingshot]

I hope your visit goes well and you get a "meh" from your docs.

Personally, I have to make myself drink water on purpose October Nov, Dec. By Christmas I get locked into a place of enough water for my body and activity.

 

[Teacher Terry]

I think the stress test is a good idea.

 

[Dawg52]

I think the stress test is a good idea.

I got the heart portion of the lab work tonight via email and no flags shown. Which is a good thing but will probably do stress test anyway.

 

[TwoByFour]

2x4, I read a book written by a doctor and she has taken a similar approach. KI have numerous chronic conditions so see my doctor once/year and have yearly blood work. I have been rethinking some tests. I only only do mammograms every 2 years and have had one colonoscopy at age 53. Now 64 and will do one more close to 70 and then done. However, if I had ignored my symptoms at age 50 I would be dead by now.

I think young people (anyone under 50, basically) should absolutely take care of themselves and use medicine to the fullest. I actually feel somewhat guilty that my cohort (people over 65) use such a disproportionate amount of healthcare resources, even though we are not doing all that much for society.

I am in the last quarter of my life here on earth. I don't have a problem with that. If I could, I would gladly donate my Medicare coverage to the young people who need help and are struggling. But since I can't, what I do is use as little of it as possible.

 

[RAE]

Dawg, if I were you, the first thing I would do is review any prescription meds I was taking (for anything) for their side effects. I think it is very possible that the problems you are experiencing could be caused by a med. you are taking for something else (if you are taking any meds, that is). This type of thing happens all the time to people, and a lot of doctors don't investigate enough to figure out what is going on.

 

[Dawg52]

Dawg, if I were you, the first thing I would do is review any prescription meds I was taking (for anything) for their side effects. I think it is very possible that the problems you are experiencing could be caused by a med. you are taking for something else (if you are taking any meds, that is). This type of thing happens all the time to people, and a lot of doctors don't investigate enough to figure out what is going on.

I've been on Lovastatin for about 12+ years, glucosamine chondroitin less than a year, occasional sinus med, a low dose aspirin and prilosec. Pretty normal stuff.

 

[RAE]

I've been on Lovastatin for about 12+ years, glucosamine chondroitin less than a year, occasional sinus med, a low dose aspirin and prilosec. Pretty normal stuff.

Dawg, are you taking a CoEnzyme Q10 supplement along with the statin drug that you take? Statins deplete CoQ10 from the body, and proper heart function is dependent upon having enough CoQ10. I don't know if this could be part of your problem, but it's something to consider (disclaimer: I am not a doctor, but I also know (from experience) that some doctors overlook things like this when prescribing meds).


Also, statin drugs themselves have all sorts of side effects, as we've discussed before in this forum. I know you have been taking a statin for 12 years without any serious problems, but sometimes an intolerance to a drug can develop over time. Here is one article about some of the potential problems with taking statin drugs:
https://www.westonaprice.org/health...about-popular-cholesterol-lowering-medicines/

 

[target2019]

I feel it is always best to start with a mild review of research, and then discuss any supplement with an MD.
https://nccih.nih.gov/health/coq10

 

[Dawg52]

Dawg, are you taking a CoEnzyme Q10 supplement along with the statin drug that you take? Statins deplete CoQ10 from the body, and proper heart function is dependent upon having enough CoQ10. I don't know if this could be part of your problem, but it's something to consider (disclaimer: I am not a doctor, but I also know (from experience) that some doctors overlook things like this when prescribing meds).


Also, statin drugs themselves have all sorts of side effects, as we've discussed before in this forum. I know you have been taking a statin for 12 years without any serious problems, but sometimes an intolerance to a drug can develop over time. Here is one article about some of the potential problems with taking statin drugs:
https://www.westonaprice.org/health...about-popular-cholesterol-lowering-medicines/

Nope. No one has ever suggested that. I'll ask next time I see my GP.

 

[deserat]

......Then I had procedures to test for cancer, including two probes that went into places you don't want them to go. And needles that poked through the colon, repeatedly, into the prostate. Which is sensitive. ........Just thoughts.

Well, that's an understatement....