HEALTH I may be getting close to “semi-invalid” status

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Coco82919

Veteran Member
I am sorry you are going through this.

Time to make sure someone can take care of your animals.

You need to go to the VA as soon as possible. Something is up. Could be cardiomyopathy, could be afib, could be high blood sugar.

You should have your own glucose meter. Go to Costco and find out which one of the meters has the cheapest sticks. Then get the meter that goes with it.

I do not think this is a lung problem. Albuterol will increase your cardiac rate and work load.

STOP! getting steroid shots. And I mean STOP IT. goddamn it. You should only get 3 a year. They will increase you blood sugar like crazy. Also shut down your own ability to produce your own steroids among many other problems. What idiot doctor keeps giving you steroid shots? Are they different doctors who have no clue that you have already gotten some.

I think if you do not get this worked out soon we will all be mourning your death. Time to take positive action. Start fasting now. See a cardiologist now. Find someone to look after your dogs now. Your body is in trouble.

Sorry to be hard on you but I feel you need a good kick in the butt. This is the third time in a month or two you have been in dire trouble. Do something about it before you can not.
 
bw

bw

Fringe Ranger
Dennis Olson said:
I picked up a glucose meter at Wally’s. They’re pretty cheap. Tested as soon as I’d read how to use it and get it set up. Reading is currently 109 mg/dL. I think that’s pretty good, though I don’t really know. I haven’t eaten for about 4 hours.
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Test about 45 minutes after eating stuff. Anything type stuff, until you figure out the pattern. After a meal 140 is a good upper limit. I shoot for 120 tops, but after getting a handle on things I'm typically under 100.
 
Dennis Olson

Dennis Olson

Chief Curmudgeon
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bw said:
Test about 45 minutes after eating stuff. Anything type stuff, until you figure out the pattern. After a meal 140 is a good upper limit. I shoot for 120 tops, but after getting a handle on things I'm typically under 100.
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Good to know. Having a grilled cheese now.
 
F

FireDance

TB Fanatic
Dennis Olson said:
My Apple Watch has ECG capability. I use it regularly. The results can be sent directly to my doc.

I picked up a glucose meter at Wally’s. They’re pretty cheap. Tested as soon as I’d read how to use it and get it set up. Reading is currently 109 mg/dL. I think that’s pretty good, though I don’t really know. I haven’t eaten for about 4 hours.

After using the inhaler, I actually feel quite a bit better. Not sure what all this means, but I was able to walk more steadily and didn’t tire out instantly like before. I hope I don’t have asthma.
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Your glucose level as reported may be a WEE high after 4 hours of fasting. But this is very close to “normal”. But, what have you had to drink during this time? Anything that turns to “sugar”? Your best bet on glucose readings is to do one before you eat or drink anything in the morning but then the rest of the day before and after meals. Document it as well as whatever you had to eat/drink.

Are you guys “fully pollinated” right now? Do you normally have allergies (I mean heavy pollen reactions in spring?) That’s a “possible” in my book.

But you still need lab work if nothing else. ASAP.

Money or your life. Choice is clear from my lovely beach vacation resort (that I’m spoofing about). Labs may run you $150 out of pocket. The rest. Well, you have to place that into the good Lord’s hands.

Just go. You have been having “odd” symptoms for awhile now. They will not be solved without other “clues”.

The hell with money.
 
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inskanoot

inskanoot

Veteran Member
Some good advice given. Could you have a low-grade infection, maybe a sore tooth? I don’t know if you take vitamins, but they can make a big difference. Especially coenzyme Q10. I found out about CoQ10 when the head of a prominent West Coast cardiac facility recommended it for ALL of his cardiac patients. He said that for many it was the difference between being bedridden or not. Your body makes less as you age and you cannot o.d. on it. Clif High made several youtube videos regarding his struggle to regain his health. A lot of what he talks about is particularly relevant for men over 40. Many people take spirulina or spirulina/chlorella powder or tabs instead of a multi. Then there’s thyroid. Plenty of good threads on that subject. If one of your hormones is messed up, more than one is probably messed up. I think you will work your way through this. When it rains, it pours.
 
Dennis Olson

Dennis Olson

Chief Curmudgeon
_______________
FireDance said:
But, what have you had to drink during this time? Anything that turns to “sugar”?
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I had a sip of apple juice before I left because my mouth was dry. Literally a single swallow. My normal drinks throughout the day are flavor drops in water.
FireDance said:
Do you normally have allergies
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No

FireDance said:
Just go. You have been having “odd” symptoms for awhile now. They will not be solved without other “clues”.
Click to expand...
I’ll be calling the VA in the morning.
 
Bps1691

Bps1691

Veteran Member
Dennis Olson said:
About a half hour after the grilled cheese, I’m at 137. Is that good?
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When you have a blood test - the range my GLUCOSE lab results from my last test show as Standard Range: 60 - 99 mg/dL

These are target values from The Joslin Diabetes Center, which include levels for people with diabetes:

When MeasuredGoals for Healthy AdultsGoals with Diabetes
Before lunch, dinner, or a snackLess than 110 mg/dl70-130 mg/dl
2 hours after you eatLess than 140 mg/dlLess than 180 mg/dl
Before bedtimeLess than 120 mg/dl90-150 mg/dl
 
Bps1691

Bps1691

Veteran Member
Dennis Olson said:
About a half hour after the grilled cheese, I’m at 137. Is that good?
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Having grown up with Brittle diabetic cousins, alcohol and any kind of starches are not your friend. Fruit sugars are almost as bad as processed sugar and green beans are 'free'. Soda pop and other sugary drinks is a big no no (including water flavorings).
 
WriterMom

WriterMom

Veteran Member
I know it's really difficult without health insurance (I don't have any either).

Do you ever experience shortness of breath when lying down in bed at night?

In my not-a-healthcare-professional opinion, you NEED to be seen for this. Shortness of breath during exertion and fatigue/weakness could be a heart issue. If you go to the emergency room next time you feel short of breath, they will likely run the necessary tests. I know it's not great to have to pay for an ER visit, but at least you can make payments over time. Your dogs need you & we need you too! Please be proactive about this :-)
 
W

wintery_storm

Veteran Member
Dennis:
You said you had Cobra. Did you look into the the Affordable Cares Act Health Insurance. Biden upgraded it to 800% OF the poverty rate. I have it with my state in Pa. I am 62 as well. And just so everyone knows We de not get Medicare until we are 65. My plan is low cost and high deductible. I only go to the doctor twice a year. I am only paying 87 dollars a month. But since Biden changed the enrollment date to August 31st and increased the Poverty rate. I will now get a higher supplement. Almost 900 a month so I will not go from a Bronze (crappy) insurance to a Gold (really Good) insurance that will cover tests with low co pays. It depends on your income on what you would get. Hubby is retiring this year so we had to guess at our income. And since your are now laid off you report what income you made or have coming in. You upload the documents.

Look into it you may better a better deal or not.
But I sure know how it feels to be older and not able to do what I use to. My knees are bad. Need replacements, but I am waiting to have them done.
And the extra weight does not help. I worked on taking off 40 pounds by giving up all bread and sweets over a 2 year period. I also joined a gym. That was pre covid. Now that I am at home I have put 20 back on. Oh well.

The ups and downs of being older.
Take care and see a Doc when you can.
 
Teeja

Teeja

On the Beach
Dennis, if you haven't already, you might want to head over to ApneaBoard.com and download their free software for the PC (Mac, Windows & Linux versions). Software is called OSCAR and the download link is at the top of the forum over there Apnea Board Forum - CPAP | Sleep Apnea

There's really some amazing people there who might be able to isolate some potential issues if you post your CPAP data charts from the OSCAR software. As long as you have a newer CPAP with an SD card, it should work.

Who knows for sure, but this could be your sleep apnea condition has worsened, or morphed from simple Obstructed Sleep Apnea into the kind of apnea that needs a VPAP or ASV machine. I'm thinking of that possibility since you mentioned the fact that you have sleep apnea and using the CPAP helped, plus using the inhaler helped.

Might be worth taking a look at your CPAP data. You're a geek anyway, so take a look at the software. The regulars on Apnea Board are really good at intepreting data for you. Just join and start a new thread asking for help. OSCAR is based upon the old Sleepyhead software, which is no longer maintained. OSCAR is much better than the old Sleepyhead software, and is constantly being improved by the developers over there.
 
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Babs

Babs

Veteran Member
My dad was experiencing similar symptoms before he passed. He had congestive heart failure. I'm not saying that's what it is, but you do need to be seen by a doc. Praying for you!
 
Teeja

Teeja

On the Beach
Babs said:
My dad was experiencing similar symptoms before he passed. He had congestive heart failure. I'm not saying that's what it is, but you do need to be seen by a doc. Praying for you!
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Have a friend with similar symptoms who used the OSCAR software and his CPAP data showed he had either "Periodic Breathing" or "Cheyne–Stokes respiration", which can be indicative of congestive heart failure or other cardiovascular disease. He went into hospital and confirmed that indeed it was a heart issue. Got a pacemaker as a result.
 
Intestinal Fortitude

Intestinal Fortitude

Have Faith
Do you have a regular exercise program i.e. walking (regularly) say every other day for 1/2 hour for starters?
cut out coffee
cut out chocolate
get a stationary bike (and use it)
 
Teeja

Teeja

On the Beach
Intestinal Fortitude said:
Do you have a regular exercise program i.e. walking (regularly) say every other day for 1/2 hour for starters?
cut out coffee
cut out chocolate
get a stationary bike (and use it)
Click to expand...

All good advice, but the severity of Dennis' symptoms indicates something more is going on than a simple lack of exercise or too much coffee or chocolate. :hmm: With the conditions he described, he's unable to be doing much in the way of walking or using a stationary bike.

I agree with others who tell you to go to the doc asap. If it's a heart issue, you need to address it sooner rather than later.
 
Mprepared

Mprepared

Veteran Member
Babs said:
My dad was experiencing similar symptoms before he passed. He had congestive heart failure. I'm not saying that's what it is, but you do need to be seen by a doc. Praying for you!
Click to expand...

I was thinking of congestive heart failure too. My mother had this. I lived in another state and I called her one day and she did not answer the phone, so called back and she answered and I said where were you and she said I was trying to get to the phone, but out of breath and took longer. My brother lived there and I told him, take her to the Emergency Room now. He did and she was admitted with congestive heart failure. A year or so later had to have a pacemaker and lived another 10 years.
 
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Mprepared

Mprepared

Veteran Member
I just thought of something!!!!!!!!!!!!! This may sound crazy, but I had bilateral pulmonary embolism after having chickenpox infection. I had no idea what was wrong. My brother told me I needed to exercise and lift weights. I actually was lifting weights some and trying to get things done thinking I was out of shape. It got where each day I could walk less and bending over I was really short of breath. It got to the point it was severe, so I went to the walk-in clinic and they did an EKG and a d-dimer. The EKG actually showed some right heart strain. They called later and said the d-dimer was elevated and to go to the ER. I had bilateral pulmonary embolism. I also had a pulmonary infarction and looking back it was one night I bent over to pick something up and felt a burning pain in my back. It was hard to lay down. I was put on Eliquis. After a year I stopped taking it and another year went by and I had an upper respiratory infection and within a month I was having trouble walking. I did not notice it short distance, but it got where I walked across the parking lot to the grocery store front door and got a cart and was short of breath. I went inside the store and felt lightheaded a moment and I got worried so went to the walk-in clinic and they did a d-dimer and next day called and said go to the ER. Again, I had bilateral PE. It is a strange thing. You would think you would know you had something like this, but I went a week or more before it got bad.
 
O

OldArcher

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Dennis Olson said:
Not sure how to put this. After my second steroid shot a month or so ago, as some of you know, two days later I had to cut the grass. And though I went slow, I had to stop multiple times for an extended break. At one point, my heart rate was 144! However, my pulse-ox showed (and still shows) 96% or so. My BP cuff shows about 130/75-ish. However, since that day, I’ve had little energy and tire easily. Yesterday I had to cut the grass again. Had to lay down for an hour after. Today I had to move 14 50# flagstones. Had to lay down all afternoon. I’m also weak and shaky, almost jittery feeling. And yes, all this predated my taking the vax.

While laying down, I was gasping for air. Yet pulse-ox was still 96. I used my CPAP and was able to breathe more easily.

I have to say I’m getting pretty anxious.

ETA: Walking the dogs any distance is out of the question. Hell, just walking any distance is out of the question.
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Sorry for your challenges, Dennis.
Have your Oxygen meter checked... If it doesn’t vary in it’s readings, it’s probably defective. Will read the res of your posts now...

Take care,

OA
 
O

OldArcher

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Mprepared said:
I was thinking of congestive heart failure too. My mother had this. I lived in another state and I called her one day and she did not answer the phone, so called back and she answered and I said where were you and she said I was trying to get to the phone, but out of breath and took longer. My brother lived there and I told him, take her to the Emergency Room now. He did and she was admitted with congestive heart failure. A year or so later had to have a pacemaker and lived another 10 years.
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I have CHF, and I tire easily. If you are found to have it, Dennis, you’ll have to pace yourself on EVERYTHING... LOTS of rest, naps, and watching your fluid intake, as it directly affects your heart...

All the Best, and hope for you to have a better future...

OA
 
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