Hell's Bells and Buckets of Blood (Whole40, Day 18)

I had my first appointment with my new doctor (under new insurance) today, and she was very nice and helpful. I like her assistant, too; we had a good chat (dental hygienists and medical assistants who are nice to people and make nervous patients feel better - I APPRECIATE YOU).

The assistant actually asked me what my normal blood pressure is, and I had no idea. I know I hate getting my blood pressure taken (the inflatable cuff makes me more nervous than it should) so I asked if it was really high, and she said "no, it's SUPER low." I asked if that was bad and she said "not really. If we need to, it's easier to make it go up than to lower it. Maybe you're just super chill."

HAH. Unlikely. But it was nice of her to say so. I wish I could remember what she said my blood pressure was...I'll track it down at some point. It was 90/52. Still need to do more research to find out what that means. The new "My Health Online" website will be fun to explore - I guess this insurance remembers me from my past and has some reports dating back to early 1998 (I was in eighth grade!).

Physical exam went fine, doctor said it was normal for fat loss to go slowly and that it was actually a good sign (that my body was losing actual fat as opposed to just water), but she understands it's frustrating and that it could take 2-3 years to get down to 150 or whatever goal weight is. Everything looked normal (actual test results come back soon). Then I went to the lab and got stuck in the arm to get a lipid profile.

Turns out the insurance might not cover a blood type test, which is completely stupid, but I didn't want to risk it. I figure I'll go donate blood at Stanford soon; I hear they tell you your type after you donate. And that's free!

One mulligan from today: as is protocol at a doctor's appointment, I got weighed. But I ignored and la-la-la'd my way through it. One of the rules of Whole30 (Whole40 in this case) is no weighing or measuring during the WholeSomething. So no official weight will be taken until day 41.

Doctor approved of the eating plan, but recommended a vitamin (esp a calcium supplement), since she's concerned my cutting out dairy could mean I'm not getting enough. I *think* vitamin supplements are ok on Whole30, and I don't mind taking them. It's *remembering* to take 'em that's the problem.

And my height is 67.5" (five foot seven and a half). I was right!

On another note, one of the air conditioning hoses in my car was punctured and needs to be replaced. It's been hell on Earth these last few days (when I left the doctor's office at 10:30AM it was 94 degrees. I'm not exaggerating). So.....sigh.....good thing I have emergency money because my little car needs some TLC.