February 1st - 7th is Women's Heart Health Awareness Week and I felt it would be remiss of me not to include some conversation about it here given that the professor suffered a heart attack a bit over two years ago and that I am a prime candidate.
Let us start with why I am a prime candidate - Obviously being 100 pounds overweight puts me in the high-risk area immediately. Add in High Chloresterol, physical inactivity, diabetes, post-menopausal and over 55. Since only two of those are needed to put me in the at-risk category that I have six means that I am very high risk. The only way it could be worse is if I still smoked or drank and still lived a high-stress life. Thank goodness for small miracles.
Not sure where you stand? check out this checklist. This checklist and the other pdf's linked here are from the Women's Heart Foundation
Do you know what the prescription is to lower the risk factors? It's simple join the 10,000 steps a day club. That's it! walk 10 thousand steps every day. Know how many I average? Between 200 and 400 steps except on those days when I go out. When the professor comes to visit we spend a good part of the day walking, it's part of his rehabilitation and of course, I go with him. This means that though I am high-risk I am not in as much danger as I could be.
One problem women have is that our heart attacks manifest differently than men. It is highly possible to mistake a heart attack for a panic attack and dismiss it. Yeah, that took me by surprise too. It was also kinda scary because as I was reading over the symptoms I realized that it is possible that I have had a mild attack and not known it. Here is something else for you to read it's called a Heart Attack Action Plan and gives a list of symptoms and what you should do about it.
(Please calm down Professor, it is only speculation)
What I am going to do is find a way to do 10 thousand steps a day right away, Fibro be damned!
Let us start with why I am a prime candidate - Obviously being 100 pounds overweight puts me in the high-risk area immediately. Add in High Chloresterol, physical inactivity, diabetes, post-menopausal and over 55. Since only two of those are needed to put me in the at-risk category that I have six means that I am very high risk. The only way it could be worse is if I still smoked or drank and still lived a high-stress life. Thank goodness for small miracles.
Not sure where you stand? check out this checklist. This checklist and the other pdf's linked here are from the Women's Heart Foundation
Do you know what the prescription is to lower the risk factors? It's simple join the 10,000 steps a day club. That's it! walk 10 thousand steps every day. Know how many I average? Between 200 and 400 steps except on those days when I go out. When the professor comes to visit we spend a good part of the day walking, it's part of his rehabilitation and of course, I go with him. This means that though I am high-risk I am not in as much danger as I could be.
One problem women have is that our heart attacks manifest differently than men. It is highly possible to mistake a heart attack for a panic attack and dismiss it. Yeah, that took me by surprise too. It was also kinda scary because as I was reading over the symptoms I realized that it is possible that I have had a mild attack and not known it. Here is something else for you to read it's called a Heart Attack Action Plan and gives a list of symptoms and what you should do about it.
(Please calm down Professor, it is only speculation)
What I am going to do is find a way to do 10 thousand steps a day right away, Fibro be damned!
From now on every time I visit you, you have to walk with me every day.
ReplyDeleteNo excuses like weather, I'll take you to a mall to walk around.
Yes Dear
ReplyDelete