Nasty shock off doctor this morning

[pollylocketpickedapocket]

Cholesterol and blood pressure through the roof. I’m 41 bmi 28.
I’ve had a shocking lifestyle the last couple of years, fried food , alcohol takeaways nearly every day.
I’m at higher risk of a stroke or heart attack.
I had concerns about my liver as my appetite has decreased and I’ve developed discord eczema.
I’m in shock, I knew I wasn’t as healthy as I used to be but didn’t know things were this bad.
A scan I had a year ago shown fatty liver although I wasn’t told till yesterday.
I’ve also had jaw pain occasionally over the last few months, last maybe a minute, it’s very occasional so I’m worried about that too.
Dr said he’ll see me in 3-6 months and to make lifestyle changes.
I’m worried sick, I’m a single mum to a 5yo
Do I need aspirin or what? Anything that could help.

And I'd also second getting a blood pressure monitor from the chemist and taking readings over a week or two - its always higher at the doctors. You get a much better picture of what its like.

OP, you don't need to take benecol or anything like that. Porridge or muesli (anything oaty) is just as good at lowering cholesterol and maybe even better, and much cheaper.
And if you make your own muesli, you can leave out the sugar and make it much healthier than shop bought too.
I'm another one with jaw pain because of clenching in my sleep.

Don't panic. Stop alcohol completely, join a weight loss club, start gentle exercise, like couch to 5K, swimming etc. I'm sure you will get to grips with it

@MaudesMum

Just a minor thing, but if you download the NHS app to your phone (as long as it is supported by your surgery), all the results of blood tests etc will turn up there. This is really helpful as it gives you a bit more control and more detail than you sometimes get from the surgery.

That’s good, never knew that! Regarding the complaint, if I’d been told a year ago I had fatty liver I’d have made changes then plus it’s only chance I spoke to the gp today for him to correct that I was told my cholesterol was fine! I’d have been totally oblivious. Regarding my lifestyle, of course I knew it wasn’t healthy but many many people are overweight, drink etc and they seem ok, you can’t get away with things at my age that I used to and yes it does come as a shock to know it’s affecting your health

That must have been a terrible shock but try not to panic!

Make an effort to get out and active with your son every day. Walk to the park, walk to the shops, go on active days out etc. Now everywhere has reopened could you do more things? Swimming? Trampolining etc?

Also look at rejigging your entire diet but try it one step at a time. Can you cut takeout down to once a fortnight first? Take picnics if you go out.

Can you change out your teas/lunches etc, cooking from scratch is brilliant. Would hello fresh be in your budget? It takes the stress of meal planning and lots are actually very child friendly.

Best of all cut your drinking and smoking down/give up if you can.

You're young and you've got plenty of time to turn around, don't worry!

@Gwenhwyfar Allegedly were meant to be invited after 40 for a check. Nobody I know has ever had one.

[quote CornishGem1975]@Gwenhwyfar Allegedly were meant to be invited after 40 for a check. Nobody I know has ever had one. [/quote]
I was invited for one last March, at the pharmacy. Cancelled you know why!

[quote CornishGem1975]@Gwenhwyfar Allegedly were meant to be invited after 40 for a check. Nobody I know has ever had one. [/quote]
I've read about that on MN and I assumed it was England only because it's not done in Wales. Seems like it's not that common then.
I'm abroad now, but at my last surgery in Wales it was SO difficult to get any kind of appointment there's no way I could have made one just for a checkup. I only managed to get an appointment for a problem I had by asking the nurse at my smear test to make me one. Reception was just 'no'.

I live abroad now and GP appointments are easy to get so I'm thinking about what I should ask to have tested. BP and cholesterol, anything else at 43?

Gwen everyone is entitled to an NHS 'health check' every five years from age 40. Some surgeries are signed up to this and call you in. Others don't. You can still ask.
Anyone can buy a home BP machine and probably get more accurate readings. The healthcheck IMO is worth simply doing for the bloods alone. DH would never otherwise have known about his cholesterol.
In Covid times however, these checks have been very much put to the bottom of the priority list as per guidelines.

Sounds like there are a few things to change but be sensible and change them a few at a time so you don't feel too deprived and fall off the healthy lifestyle wagon

FLD - drinking has to go stet. Try switching to baking goods rather than frying, keep to white meat and fish rather than red and plenty of veg/salad

I swear by the benecol drinks for keeping my cholesterol in check - when I don't have these I become border line to go onto statins - I don't want them as already on a bunch of other medication for high BP etc as well.

I would get yourself a BP monitor and take it every other day or so and keep your own records these will be more reliable than the occasional GP one where you might have what is called white coat syndrome (ie anxious etc and BP goes up). Can be ordered on amazon and make sure the cuff is a large one.

What he also hasn't said is that you are a risk for diabetes as well so would be worth reducing cakes, biscuits, carbs etc. Reducing carbs will also help pull your weight down but for now the above is probably enough to absorb for the next few weeks. Remember these new habits need to be for your child as well otherwise he will have a life time of these issues going forward so best to change habits now

Full blood count, liver and kidney function, glucose, thyroid, lipids are the basics.

A walk in the morning and, once that's routine, in the evening. Then, slowly start trading refined carbs for less refined ones (e.g., boiled potatoes instead of chips, then move on to veggier veg). Cut down on alcohol, especially before bed time. Seriously, for most people, that's going to be all it takes.

Have you had your cholesterol checked before? I has the same at a checkup with my GP, really high cholesterol and raised BP. After some more blood tests turns out I have FH (familial hypercholesterolemia) which is genetically high cholesterol and I’m now on statins and lifestyle changes won’t affect it. It may be worth mentioning to your GP as I know it’s not routinely tested for.

With all due respect, instead of spending time contacting the practice manager re the complaints procedure, would you not be better spending that time and effort towards your health and taking some personal responsibility for it?

Slimming world is great and for exercise, even a half hour walk a day will help. I'm speaking as someone who also took no personal responsibility for my own health - it is bloody hard but you can do it.

I don’t smoke, had cholesterol checked 2 years ago, that was fine.
I’m not a big sweet eater but I do like pizza, burgers, fish and chip, white bread with butter and wine. You can see how this has happened. I eat a fair amount of veg too.
My daughter obviously eats some crap too but I make sure her diet is a lot better than mine snd she has scores of exercise.

The good news is that you can make changes that will significantly improve this. You know yourself that you have eaten and drank the wrong things. It's been a tough time and most of us have eaten nice things and maybe drank too much to help get us through it.

What a great impetus to change your lifestyle. It could be quite exciting to have a bit of an overhaul... like a lifestyle makeover!

Do you have any plans yet of what you want to change and how you're going to do it? (Along with the alcohol going.)

As others have said, don’t panic. Making drastic changes now will be unsustainable and lead to you giving up. Pick one thing each week to improve a little and in 6 months you will be a new woman! If you have an iPhone I’d recommend an Apple Watch. Mine keeps me active - I have exercise and movement targets I hit every day. I also use noom which has been great (down 9kg this year) for making steady changes to my diet (I did the initial sign up info but then didn’t proceed with the full trial - they then kept sending offers so I got about 70% off). Good luck!

It's excellent that you've found out about your cholesterol now and since it was fine two years ago the impact of it being high will be mostly reversible! Plant sterol is proven to lower cholesterol - I was recommended it by a doctor and it was completely successful, you don't need benecol you can get it cheaper from boots etc in tablet form. Sorting your diet and exercising are easy fixes for this, at least you've found out early!

Buy/ get from the library these books asap...
Spoon Fed by Tim Spector, and
Why we eat (too much) by Andrew Jenkinson.

"Gwen everyone is entitled to an NHS 'health check' every five years from age 40."

NHS website does say England only.

@cptartapp

Full blood count, liver and kidney function, glucose, thyroid, lipids are the basics.

Sounds like a lot. I'll look into asking for these.

Sugar (and by extension processed carbs eg bread, pasta, crisps and starchy carbs such as potato) contributed to cholesterol. Even the NHS now mentions this on the website even though fat was seen as the main culprit for years. So lower those things plus the fried foods and when you have fat make it better sources as in avoid vegetable oils (which takaways will be full off). Did they test triglycerides?

I had a dreadful blood test 5 years ago, cutting out simple carbs and sugar lost me a lot of weight but even more importantly my bloods are great now. I know a pill sounds easier but in the long run lifestyle changes are going to have a huge impact especially in terms of longevity and future health.

Just take it slowly, if you’ve been drinking alcohol daily, you might feel worse before you get better but stick with it. Plenty of fresh fruit and veg and loads of water. You can look into your diet deeper once you have passed this first stage.

@Mamanyt

I've been missing in action from Mumsnet for the past two weeks because I HAD A STROKE! Do whatever is necessary NOW!

Oh no! hope you're recovering well