HEALTH MATTERS

During the summer of 2018 I started to get some weird feelings. It started one Sunday in the kitchen. I suddenly felt as if all my muscles in both legs, knees and feet had turned to sponge. I sat down immediately and after about five minutes the feelings went away. I have never felt anything so strange!

As I had suffered with migraine in the past, did not get the 'aura' with it, (flashing lights), but I did know about this type of symptom. I started to get these flashing lights about three years ago. Sometimes a headache followed, but not always. Wearing dark glasses helped a lot to stop it happening. As the weird feelings sometimes came within a few days of the flashing lights, I thought it was something to do with migraine, or stress related.  I am not sure if this was connected with the TIA's I suffered or not.

After suffering a few of these 'funny turns' I eventually went to the doctor. He was perplexed by it, but did not send me for tests. I told him I thought it was due to stress. In hindsight, he should have immediately sent me for tests. This carried on and I went again to the doctor, some time in 2019  who sent me for a blood tests and an ECG which measures the heart rate.  By then, I had been put on blood pressure tablets by the doctor's practice pharmacist.  The blood test showed that I had a slightly borderline high cholesterol level.

We went to Malta for a week in December 2019 and during our visit, I had two attacks where my arm felt like a hollow limb and numb feelings went down my leg. I felt very unwell one of the times. I went to another doctor at my surgery when I returned. She immediately put me on aspirin to thin my blood and the next day the stroke clinic at the hospital called me in. I couldn't go in that day, but went in the day after.

Within 2hr 45mins, going from one test to another, I was diagnosed as having had mini strokes and this came as a great shock to me! I came away with statins to lower my cholesterol and a super aspirin to thin my blood, so it goes to show it is so important to listen when doctors tell you you have high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels. I will be on these medications now for life.

I am unable to drive my car for a month.

                                                        _______________________________

Well, that's the serious part over and done with. Now the fun part!

I was apprehensive about going to the TIA clinic (transient ischaemic attack – in other words, a mini-stroke) as I knew I was to have an MRI scan. I assumed this would be a whole body scan and as I do feel claustrophobic sometimes, I thought this would freak me out. I would be lying down on my back in a tube-like contraption which has a clear lid, it passes very close to the face I believe. This is so Not My Cup Of Tea!

It turned out that I only had to have my head pass into the scanner, that cheered me up considerably I can tell you. I decided all along that the only way to do this was to shut my eyes (very childlike, but there you go! If you can't see it, it's not there! Ha, ha.) That was not the only thing that bothered me, however. I am not a person who likes to sit still for long, unless I have something to read or something to do, so I did wonder how I was going to stay still for FIFTEEN WHOLE, LONG MINUTES!

They lay me down on the scanner bed and put a large cushion under my legs to make it more comfortable and placed ear phones on my ears as it is very noisy.  They also gave me a button in my right hand to press if I started to panic. I was really determined not to panic as I would have to go through the whole procedure all over again I assumed.

The bed moved up into the scanner, I did not see as I had shut my eyes. Music was played through the headphones, but often it could not be heard as NOISY does not quite cover the noises I heard. Bang, bang, bang and more bangs.  Clunk, clunk, clunk, clunk and more clunks and so on and so forth.

I was supposed to be going on holiday to Tenerife the day before (Tuesday), but we had decided not to as our daughter is not well. Fortunately, TUI our holiday provider let us keep the holiday and we are going next March 2021 instead. I decided I would think about Tenerife and where we go whilst I was lying in the scanner and that took care of about ten minutes of the time. I was at one point standing (in my mind's eye) with my nose pressed up against Cartiere's jewellery shop window looking at their wonderful displays. (Very frustrating, as I know I can't possibly afford anything of theirs).

I lay perfectly still, but moved my toes now and then, just to keep me from going completely insane! Then I counted 60 seconds five times on my fingers hoping it would soon stop and I could go! After a few seconds the noises stopped, the bed slid out of the scanner and I opened to my eyes to see a lovely chinese man beaming at me "Well done!" he said "You did brilliantly!" It was so funny, I could have laughed out loud. Well, mission accomplished I thought, that is the worst thing over and done with. I must mention that for at least the first five minutes of laying under the scanner my heart was pounding and pounding in my chest, enough to give me a heart attack! But having done it, I know I could do it again if I had to.

For the last few days I have stopped eating chocolate, only ate one biscuit and have stopped snacking. I'm hoping this will help me drop the cholesterol down so that I can take a smaller dose tablet.

There is nothing like a health scare to focus the mind!

Thanks for reading this episode and keep well and healthy!

A very wet and windy

March 2020

PS  For quite a few years we have had advertisements on the TV which tell you about strokes.  Should your face fall on once side, if you can't hold your arms above your head or if your speech is slurred, it could be a stroke and it is time to call for an ambulance.  These attacks I had were nothing like that, but were accompanied with a numb feeling so I did not think it could possibly be a stroke or a mini-stroke.  I had seen my mother in law have a couple of mini-strokes and they were nothing like what I had suffered.  Should you have anything at all which is unusual for you  go to the doctor and make sure you get tests carried out.