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Don’t Stick Your Head in the Sand- See Your Doctor!
Why do so many people ignore their doctor’s advice?
My partner, Erika, has heart disease. It runs in her family like cancer runs in mine. I suppose we all have congenital challenges that become more pronounced as we age.
Thankfully, we’re both doing our best to face these challenges together.
But I’ve heard many stories about people whose husbands avoid the doctor, and then they are found dead on the floor. Do men consider seeking medical advice a sign of weakness?
Thankfully, Erika is not an ostrich. She has been told she needs to have more tests to determine her likelihood of having a cardiac event. So we will do that.
Until recently, she had no major health problems. And then she was diagnosed with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Essentially, this means that her heart muscle is becoming thicker, which results in the blood not pumping easily through her heart. It’s not curable, but so far, her medication seems to be helping.
Erika was pretty depressed yesterday. I have to remind her that everybody over the age of 60 is dealing with a health challenge and doing their best to manage it as well as they can.
