Health & Family Blood tests And health checks

Medicare only covers "general" blood tests once a year.

If you have diabetes, ask for referral to endocrinologist.

 

You are right. For diabetes to be properly tested, a 2hr Glucose tolerance test needs to be taken. Skip G.P and go see an endocrinologist

 

Please ask to have your pulse checked:

After years of knowing something wasn’t right and many tests, one morning I went to hospital after having a shocking night trying to sleep. I just could not lay down without effecting my breathing.

After a shower in the morning I became puffed out could not get my breath, which took about 15 mins to settle for no reason other than the shower.

I decide to go to the hospital to be checked out, by the time I got there I had started to feel normal, well my normal as it turns out I felt a bit embarrassed about going to emergency and thought I’ll get on with my day.

So, I had a quick look in the Emergency Department and all the staff looked at me there was no one there.

The nurse called me over and I told her what had happened, and she was the first one to take my pulse as far back as I can remember, she said you are AF (top chambers of your heart beating at 600 bpm, monitors showed resting heart rate 145 bpm) which I’d never heard of, my life changed forever.

After 5 weeks in hospital 10 cardio versions, 2 ablations to atria of my heart and ICD implanted months later. At some stage in the future I’ll need open heart for a triple bypass if the heart does not improve, and eventually if it progresses, transplant or hopefully stem cell will have made major break through by then.

I found this on line which explains how I felt for many years written by an Electrophysiologist.

“The symptoms of atrial flutter vary widely. On the one end of the spectrum, patients with flutter may report no symptoms, while others report severe problems, like tachycardia, loss of consciousness, chest pain or a feeling of dread. Most flutter patients however report fatigue, shortness of breath, and decreased energy levels. Many say, “something isn’t right.””

Mine was caused by Dilated cardiomyopathy which is either caused by a flu or possibly genetics. I had visited doctors on many occasions while I had the above feeling, and actual chuckle to think one gave me breathing lessons, not once was my pulse checked while it was happening and nor did I think it could be my heart I always thought it was something I ate or taken, a digestive problem.

So please ask to have your pulse taken.

If you receive a comment that your pulse or heart is quiet ask for an ultrasound, the stress test was a waste of time for me because I was reasonable fit and had 2 over a four-year period but both times felt fine. It needed to be happening, but an ultrasound would have shown it dilated.