About 3 years ago, I went to the doctor because I had difficulty breathing. The doctor, not even paying attention to the fact that I had untreated Graves disease, sent me to an array of specialists, where I ended up with a lung doctor outside of my HMO, Dr. E. Dr. E was not only a lung doctor, but a critical care doctor. Critical care is also like long term intensive care, which requires organ support and a lot of monitoring.
Anyways, on my first appointment, Dr E listens to my lungs and my heart for a long time and then sits down with me and laid out the facts. He told me that my resting heart rate was too high (about 120 BPM), and it was working so hard that it had started to skip beats. He said my heart was directly affected by my graves disease, and if I continued with it untreated, in about 6 months I would start having to see him again, only this time as a critical care patient. Once I was a critical care patient, I would be one for life.
"Get your thyroid treated, Alicia".
Well, I hated my current endocrinologist, so I went back to my HMO and asked for another one. I disliked the new one they gave me, but not as much as my old one, so I stayed with him and followed his directions and got my thyroid treated. This year I added exercise to the mix, for many reasons, one of which was I could actually handle physical activity without being bent over double gasping for air.
Two weeks ago I went to the doctor. She listened to my heart for a little and asked if I exercised at all. I told her yes, I did, 5 days a week if possible. She told me she could tell, because I had the healthy sounding heart of an athlete. My resting pulse rate is now about 60-70 BPM.
So, for all the wonderful intricacies and mysteries of the human body, I am grateful. And most of all, I am thankful for my heart, for scaring me back to the doctor, for putting up with my abuse, and for keeping me alive and well.
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| Why yes, that is a Trader Joe's 3 cheese organic pizza! |
~ Charlie Brown
