The past couple days I've been feeling more light-headed than usual, with a couple incidents of being downright dizzy.I don't think I've mentioned it before, but I've long had a high blood pressure problem. I first learned of this in 1985 when a doctor got all dramatic over my high blood pressure. I explained that my blood pressure was highly labile and very reactive to situations where I was nervous.
Such as visiting a doctor.
I remember an incident, about a decade later, in a Moab, Utah grocery store. I was feeling stressed out, mostly due to not being all that pleased with my travel companions. The pharmacy in the grocery store had one of those blood pressure checking machines.
I may be remembering what happened wrong, time and nightmares may have augmented what actually happened. But, the way I remember it, my blood pressure was something like 279/156. An alarm went off and a message flashed warning of an eminent stroke.
What I remember for sure is I was not pleased.
At that point in time I was in good shape, or so I thought. I definitely was not overweight. I was in Moab to go mountain biking.
In the years since the Moab Alarm, eating right, exercising a lot and trying as best I can to avoid stressful situations, has had my blood pressure being not quite so dire.
So, this morning, with me feeling so light-headed, I thought this might mean my blood pressure is being a bit low.
I have a self-testing blood pressure device. I'd not used it in a long time, til this morning. I was a bit surprised to see numbers I've not seen before. As in 96/61 with a pulse rate of 46. I re-took it several times with similar results.
Is this a good thing? Or have I swung too far in the other direction? Do I need to add some stress to get my blood pressure back up again? Cut back on the exercise? Gain some weight?
It's very perplexing. I think I'll go with choosing to believe I'm being extremely healthy.
49 comments:
It's Karma. From picking on people about their vapors.
Sorry.
I'll be happy to go out with you on the trails when I get back. You'll have to quit going alone as you can't know for sure when a dizzying attack will occur.
No that's not right...eat some salt
Gar, that sounds like a good plan. Except what happens when we both get the vapors at the same time?
CT2---Eat some salt? Okay.
Sounds like CT2 will also have to go. Sugar for me. Salt for you. Else we have to find someone else with a secret stash of sugar and salt.
My one and only time hiking the Tandy Hills with CT2 she had a case of the vapors. But she masked it very well. I did not know she was fighting fainting until later when she admitted she'd barely made it up a slightly inclined hill. I dunno if CT2 requires salt or sugar or both to treat her particular brand of the vapors.
Geez...it was pneumonia, just a few antibiotics and I was a okay. You fellas...gonna take a bit more TLC I'm afraid
CT2---You can describe your case of the vapors with some high falutin' medical term like pneumonia, but I was there, I saw your greenish pallor and heard your labored breathing and carried you when you collapsed. Worse case of the vapors I recollect seeing.
And my...you were quite the gentleman...catching my belabored body and scooping me up over your most muscular shoulder to whisk me away safely to the awaiting emergency vehicle. Why, if it hadn't been for your heroic efforts I might still be lying somewhere on top of ol' Tandy. Thank goodness there are chivalrous knights like yourself to attend to damsels in distress. My, My...all this talk of your most extraordinary valiant deed has caused me to go a bit faint. ;-)
CT2---Sorry you've caught my dizziness and are feeling a bit faint.
It really was the least I could do when I saw you start to wobble, you're such a teeny, dainty little damsel it was easy to carry you up steep Mount Tandy.
You are starting to make me feel quite dainty and feminine.
Gartha Mae, I don't recollect the last time I caused a super manly man, like you, to feel quite dainty and feminine. You haven't grown your hair out into a Super Mullet again, have you? I hope not. I don't know if I can muster the energy to do a mullet intervention, again, in my current dizzy condition.
So, Durango, as I understand it, you've been out here 11 years from Washington? So you should have acclimated long ago to the dryness and the fact you don't realize how much water & salt you're losing thru perspiration.
If you don't have Gatorade, squeeze some lime juice into your water bottle(s). The citrus will help elevate your electrolytes. Drink even when you don't feel thirsty, because by the time you do, you're already dehydrated (vapors -- haven't seen that one since those old high-school paperback romances!).
Sorry to hear of your BP woes; those were some scary #s. Glad it's better now -- low -- like mine.
Btw, you are a prolific writer. I've been gleefully tramping thru your posts all nite (what day is this?), but doubt I can enjoy them all....or I'll never be able to write my own!
Nighty-nite, kids.
Yes, Somaphx, at least 11 years. Previous HOT seasons I have gotten acclimated, but this year it is being different. Maybe it's more humid, maybe the pollution is worse. I dunno.
I shall use your lime juice prescription. I like lime juice in water.
Me? Prolific? I'm pleased you've been gleefully tramping thru my posts.
I clicked on your blog to see no bloggings. This is criminal. I can tell you would be quite amusing blogging-wise. So, start spewing.
Dang, Durango! Give a gal a break!
Found you accidentally in a hunting & gathering cyberspree less than 24 hrs. ago -- read many of your blogs, commented, digested site content restrictions, copyrights & terms of service and put up a partial profile .... was rocking out fine until I hit templates, rec'd errors "bx-6uuzd" (googlechrome - Singapore) and "bX-yrsugy" (Is this Zulu surgery?)....
Even Scorpio 7s w/Gemini Rising hit that 4 a.m. Wall! Quadratic Convergence failed; initial value was too far from zero.
Intended blog got bogged in technicalities; original (or not) intent was lost.
Patience, Durango. You'll bask in the duct-taped chaos of my spew sooner than you'd like ....
Sorry, Somaphx, I'll try and locate a break that I can give you.
Stick with the Minima template. Makes it easy to make it look nice.
I'm appalled you had a Quadratic Convergence error. Could this possibly be caused by being too close to the Marfa Lights?
If you need help with a Blogger program vexation I can do so. You wouldn't be the first I've helped out of Zulu Surgery woes.
I'm seven miles from those erratic Lights, but their invisible vapour trails are longer than the space shuttles' afterburn ....
I'm an internet neophyte -- a diletante -- know a little about a lot (just enough to be dangerous) & clueless most of the time.
The "Minima" template was the first I attempted -- think I'm having a browser or hard drive problem....
I'm a double-amputee with a literary hard-on.
Somaphx, I feel blessed that I have all my limbs, but I also feel a bit unblessed, because I don't think I've ever had the pleasure of experiencing this literary hard-on of which you speak.
My Gawd! This is why I find Scorpios highly entertaining albeit dangerous.
I suggest rapid absquatulation. The image of you basking in duct-taped chaos of spewage is already causing me pain.
Gar---
Your pain threshold is really way too low.
Darn you and the big words you use that I don't know. I had to look up absquatulation. I think I did so previously when I saw it on your blog in reference to me, but I forgot what it meant. Are you saying I need to hurry up and argue and then die?
ab·squat·u·late
(b-skwch-lt)
intr.v. ab·squat·u·lat·ed, ab·squat·u·lat·ing, ab·squat·u·lates Midwestern & Western U.S.
1.
a. To depart in a hurry; abscond: "Your horse has absquatulated!" (Robert M. Bird).
b. To die.
2. To argue.
[Mock-Latinate formation, purporting to mean "to go off and squat elsewhere".]
Regional Note: In the 19th century, the vibrant energy of American English appeared in the use of Latin affixes to create jocular pseudo-Latin "learned" words. There is a precedent for this in the language of Shakespeare, whose plays contain scores of made-up Latinate words. Midwestern and Western U.S. absquatulate has a prefix ab-, "away from," and a suffix -ate, "to act upon in a specified manner," affixed to a nonexistent base form -squatul-, probably suggested by squat. Hence the whimsical absquatulate, "to squat away from." Another such coinage is Northern busticate, which joins bust with -icate by analogy with verbs like medicate. Southern argufy joins argue to a redundant -fy, "to make; cause to become." Today, these creations have an old-fashioned and rustic flavor curiously at odds with their elegance. They are kept alive in regions of the United States where change is slow. For example, Appalachian speech is characterized by the frequent use of words such as recollect, aggravate, and oblige.
D ~ I'm not missing limbs (except, of course, The Essential Appendage outlined so eloquently in your last post)!
It was metaphor -- a cerebral double amputee -- went in loaded for bear to post my first insomniatic blog & aborted mission with a skinny-chicken technical door prize....
a phantom 3 a.m. hard-on with no hands.
But you're just having some fun w/me, right? You may have missed your true calling: stand-up comedy.
Just a thought.
Somaphyx, thank you for clarifying your limb situation. I figured it had to be the lower limbs you'd lost due to you seemed to have use of your typing fingers.
I have to admit, I am really dense, so things like a metaphor fly right past me.
As for me having some fun with you? Me? No, really, I am always deadly serious. Always.
"....hurry up, argue and then die"?
The World According to Gar. Check out the Encyclopedia of Death & Dying.
And did I mention? Leos are Trouble.
Somaphx, I don't put a lot of stock or thought into that Astrological Sign stuff, but I'm almost 100% certain you are wrong in thinking that Leos are Trouble. I'm am a Leo. And I'm no Trouble. Absolutely No Trouble at all. Totally Trouble-free. Did you consult Gar the Texan for your Astro Info? He has been shown and known to be erroneous about these type things.
Nope and nope; One, I did not consult with Guru Gar on the present moon-trine-sun configuration, and
two, my Leo assessment is based upon past/present perspectives of personal experience (men only -- sharing & control issues); my world-class girlchild is a stellar Leo, August 5th.
Nothing personal, okay? Leos are the Lion, the Sun, and the center of their own universe.
You should check out not only your sun sign (Leo), but your Rising Sign, your Life Path number (numerology) combined w/Chinese astrology....peel back your layers, discover your subterranean dimensions ....
"Know thyself. To thine own self be true."
I smile cheerfully at the Scorpio's Din of Cosmic Spewage into the basking duct-taped lion's Den of Skeptic Tranquility.
Gar Guru, Ever since you've been involved with that Chinese girl you've become increasingly Confucius-like.
Somaphx, I've been peeling and peeling, but so far I've found no subterranean dimensions. I feat this means I am very shallow.
G2, the frog also smiled -- with righteous trepidation -- when he let the scorpion convince him a piggyback ride across the pond was safe ....
I pinpointed Durango on the map -- East Texas! That's Loosianna! If you've got duct tape in Louisiana, you've got a party!
Durango's right: You're out there -- very poetic. "Simmering cauldron of rage barely contained within a petite Asian body" (a friend's quote, not mine) explains it all nicely!
Durango, mi amigo nuevo, a couple hours' digging & peeling constitutes not even a half-assed attempt at self-knowledge. If you are serially searching, you must submit yourself to brutal introspection, as William Hurt did in "Altered States ....
I have a couple poems on this.
Scorpios are intense. We like it deep.
** Don't know if this will post; having password sign-in problems. Just got here & Singapore is booting me out (they have censorship over there, ya know?).
And I get the feeling you guys are double-teaming me!
Somaphx, GG and me can't cooperate well enough to double-team anyone.
If you pinpointed Durango, Texas on a map I think your pin pointed wrong. Durango, Texas is down by Waco, maybe 50 miles southeast.
You're right, GG is out there. And he likes his cauldrons of rage barely contained.
I told you I was shallow, I think I only spent about 10 minutes digging & peeling, not a couple hours. What William Hurt did in Altered States looked too scary.
It appears Singapore did let your post through. You might want to work a bit harder on behaving yourself, like quit spitting your gum on the ground, lest you find yourself with a caning date.
Oooooh! A caning! Now you're making my nipples hard!
Somaphx, what is wrong with me? This is the 2nd time today someone has told me I made their nipples hard. I feel very bad about this.
What a very queer little serendipity (I don't believe in coincidences)!
And why, WHY does this make you feel bad? Shows your words weild power. This is a good thing for a writer. Revel in hard nipples all day!
Btw, the quote on the simmering cauldron was from a pilot out of Seattle. I have family -- and ex-family -- up there: Bellevue and Everette, respectively.
Do you miss it? All that "liquid sunshine"? That's what my sis called it when I visited them in Portland.
Somaphx, I hear what you are saying, and I appreciate you saying that words were the nipple hardener in the second instance, but words had nothing to do with the nipple hardening first incident of the day.
I lived about 25 miles north of Everett, in the Skagit Valley town of Mount Vernon. They are having a bout of the liquid sunshine up there the past few days. I've been hearing a lot of whining.
But, summer is almost here. Summer in the Pacific Northwest is usually the opposite of the stereotype of rain all the time. Instead, it's usually natural air conditioning and clear skies. And by August all the blackberries you can eat. For free.
I miss some of it. I've not been back since August of 2008. That was a traumatic visit that still seems to haunt me. You go back far enough in my blog and you'll come to the trauma and its aftermath.
I recall one of your blogs, during the wee hours (was that only this morning?!) about Dec. 5, 2008 being the last time you stayed up till midnite .... odd you recall that....very odd. Part of your trauma?
It made me recall that the last night of really good sleep I had -- one of two since July 4th w/e of 1991 -- was March 18, 2005, my first night as a new resident of the ghost town. It felt safe, free from the stalkers....
Ah, sleep. Need it more than sex or mota right now.
Be assurred, I will find the aforementioned blog. I'm rather OCD about leaving no molecule unturned.
Two questions: How did you jump orbit from WA to TX and what is "heat aversion therapy"?
Somaphx, Heat Aversion Therapy is a treatment where you get used to HEAT by forcing yourself to be out in it, til you are no longer averse to it. Or so I've been told. I'm no expert on this subject.
The jump from WA to TX story I only tell in person, with the understanding, before it being told, that I will be reduced to tears in its telling. And that no follow up questions are allowed. Or comments.
Somaphx, I forgot to explain staying up til midnite, December 5 of 2008. This was a totally non-WA trauma related late night. I go to the Xmas Party of a friend of mine here, every year, and that was that night. It was at a Dude Ranch in Grapevine. I think I got back here around 1 in the morning. Or later. Sadly, the bad economy messed up that party this year, well 2009, hopefully it will be back for 2010. So, I think it has been well over a year since I've been out past midnight. I'm likely forgetting an incident. Or two.
Got it. Understood.
I blundered and broke my own one pecadillo rule w/the mindless blurt about sex & mota. That's just me.
But let's be clear: it wasn't a come-on. Not looking for sex, just miss it. Shed the splintered mast, mercifully, of a 5-yr. relationship w/a much younger man 16 mos. ago. Finito.
Your version of heat aversion therapy doesn't sound .... well, sound. Dr. says don't do it. Locate your center, your intuition and listen to your body.
Also, comments awhile ago to Gar Guru about Asian cauldrons got snagged by Singapore. Told you they're listening ....
Am I mistaken, or didn't I spy a blog or two with "Insomnia" somewhere in the title? Is it just a hit 'n' run thing, only sometimes?
What's your "normal" shade of late?
Somaphx,
Like I said, I am very dense and shallow. There was a mindless blurt about sex & mota? And I didn't notice it? There was a come-on possibility? And I did not notice it? Why are those Singapoopers listening to us? Gar Guru and his Asian cauldrons cause so much trouble for so many people. I am now going to go look for my center. I suspect I will not find it.
Finally! The first blessed rain of the season .... Hoo-rah!
Rolling gray clouds, lightning & Thunder -- such Thunder! Grumbling like a big belly with a whole box of laxatives....
The birds are out playing in it. I'm going out in it, too! Maybe the teenage feral skinny chicken is out there ....
Luego, Durango. Enjoyed the exchange! I'll tackle that blog template speedbump later ....
Summations are necessary.
Dango: She wasn't Chinese. She was Korean.
I'm enjoying the mental seductions inspired by "Simmering cauldron of rage barely contained within a petite Asian body". At least I'll sleep well.
Garlo---
I'm almost 100% certain you said she was Chinese. How many Asians are you simmering with?
Somaphx, by "normal" shade of late, I'm thinking you are asking me how late I stay awake.
Well, I go to be early.
But, sometimes I do have insomnia. Which causes me to stay up late.
Love the "Chink"/Korean/Asian-American connections in The Big Lebowski -- hilarious!
Gar, you need to handle that cauldron stealthily -- like nitro, but work it like a one-nite stand.
Also, bless me w/your formidable Guru insights as to what's happening w/communications out there .... two new e-ms last nite, one from FB, the other a new comment from Durango. I opened & deleted the FB e-m, clicked on the BS e-m which showed Durango's blogspot header, but the deleted FB message body .... WTF?!
And my comments to you yesterday about the gorgeous Singapore He-She's on Orchard (even YOU couldn't tell the difference!) are still awol.
Somaphx, what is going on with this stuff? I hit the publish button on your Gar suggestion about the he/she Singapore thing yesterday. And then I made a comment. I know I saw it published. And now it's gone??????
Somaphx, solved the Singapore he/she missing mystery. You made that comment to the blogging yesterday about the Crowley School gas incident. Now I can quit being paranoid about Singapore for awhile.
Whew! That's relief, altho' still does not explain those two merged e-ms last evening (like The Borg on Star Trek).
Still doesn't solve my problem with blog templates, either. Couldn't find a solution to the error msg. codes -- not thru the help or any other link there....
Cogitatin' on Gar's advice to rapidly absquatulate, but opting for a protein shake and bike ride instead.
Been reading blogs over at Veloquent, thru Cheap Tricks & Costly Truth's links (love her moniker!) -- there's some great writing over there. I thoroughly enjoyed and will return for another word fix.
In the meantime, this blog post glitch is causing much vexing consternation, so I've decided my blog is blogging to your blogs ....
unless you fix it, Prof. D!
pass the tequila.
p.s. and the last -- and only time I ever drove thru Wink, I almost missed it.
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