Went to see my fave GP yesterday and what a tonic he is... and what a contrast to the visit last week to nursey. Puzzles me how the NHS purports to have a policy but not all of them are singing from the same hymn book. If I were a GP I think I would be like this guy. As they say he has a very good bedside manner.
Mainly a chat about the cholesterol and statins. Looking at my numbers he said these are OK even given my 'condition'. What really matters is the ratio (total over LDL - hi Viv
) and in my case this is 3.9. Anything under 4.0 is OK. Dunno what the error on that is but a pessimist might say there is still room for improvement! So that is my plan for next time.
This could include statins again. He did not bring this up, I did. I expressed my concerns about side-effects initial and long-term. He concurred. Nearly fell off my chair. What a lifting contrast to last week: some hoopla about being statistically insignificant as if I was a kid. He voluntarily mentioned the usual ones plus a few even scarier ones - like nightmares ooh er missus... and would you believe sleeplessness? Sweats, aches, pains, nausea, depression... that was all I can recall... quite a long list.
Nevertheless, I might resume them for a trial period. What made me consider this was his assurance that no side effects would be irreversible. Guess I have to take his word for this. He said to take them noting any effects. Discontinue if you felt unwell and let him know.
No talk of alternatives to statin type or dosage as yet. Nor any chat about switching away from my usual metformin prescription. He is a fan of metformin and suggests I stick with it.
A lot to take in when you are hardly fully compos mentis in the surgery so I will add if I recall more.
Hope this is useful and amusing to fellow fighters!
May return to the forum later but if I don't, here is wishing you all a fantastic Easter break! 8)
