December 09 2009
ANNUAL BLOOD TEST
I had my blood test annually a week ago. The nurse in my family doctor’s office gave
me a call on Monday that he would like to see me about the blood test result Therefore I booked the appointment to see him yesterday afternoon. The matter worried me for the whole day and night. I kept worrying about the problem with blood test. There must be something serious. Otherwise he would not have to make me seeing him.
My heart kept beating fast when I stepped in his office yesterday. I was very nervous and anxious. I did not wait for him to tell me but asked him as soon as I sat down on the chair in his office.
“Is it very bad news about the blood test?” I asked him.
“Not really. But you have to take pills. The report shows that your vitamin D is very low. Your cholesterol is high. It rises from 4.2 to 5.8. The blood sugar is also high. It is from 6.3 to 6.8. The rest of the report is fine” he read the report to me.
I was very relaxed hearing it. There was actually nothing serious about the blood test. My husband and many other friends and relatives took vitamin D after they had the annual blood test last year. Mine was fine last year but low this year. My cholesterol was low last time when I had the blood test three months ago because I took pills. I had to be on the pills again. My blood sugar was high but it did not reach the level of taking the pill to control it. I asked him how to lower my blood sugar because I had been very careful with my sugar intake.
“What do you eat daily?” he asked me.
“I had a bowl of cereal with soy bean milk for breakfast, had the left over of food for lunch, and a bowl of rice for dinner with plenty of vegetable and small portion of meat or fish” I told him.
“You should replace the cereal with oatmeal, cut down with the rice to half and have more vegetable to fill up your stomach. Rice or noodle is very high in sugar. You should try to change your habit of eating for 3 months. If the sugar level is down then you do not have to take pills. I give you one more chance” he talked to me generously with smiles.
“Do not be stressful with the report. People at your age used to have this problem. It is nothing to worry about because it is not deadly but there is way to control it” he added as I walked out of his office.
I used to have three bowls or more of rice daily when I was young. I used to have a lot of meat, chunk food and so on but my body could handle them all. I was healthy and never got sick except catching a cold once in while. There are many problems with my health at my age now. No matter how careful I am in watching the food that I eat my body still can not function properly. It issues the signal to me in the blood test report that there is something going on wrongly in me that I never feel it. It needs to be corrected and well taken care of to avoid the serious problem like heart attack, diabetes, lost of bone density and so on later on. Taking the pills and watching the intake of healthy food are just for the prevention because I am in the process of aging just like an old car which required inspection and repair often.
Though I feel well I keep having the annual blood test to monitor my health to detect any problem with it as soon as possible. I will have faith in my family doctor and follow his instruction to correct whatever problem that he finds. I have to face the fact that I am getting old and need help. Aging is the process that one must go through when he reaches a certain age. I have to live with it and be happy with reality.
二零零九年十二月九日
验血报告
十年前开始，每年都去给抽血化验。一个星期前，去化验室把血抽出做化验。前天，家庭医生的医务所，来电话告诉我，医生要见我有关验血的报告。预约好，昨天下午去会见医生。接过电话后，一直很忐忑不安。身体肯定出了问题，医生才要见我。
进入医务所的办公室的时候，心跳得很厉害。很紧张、着急，没有等到医生开口说话，已经先发出提问。
“验血出来的报告很糟糕，对吗？”我问他。
“不算很差，但是，要吃药哦。维他命D很低，胆固醇高了——从4.2 升到5.8，血糖也比较高——从6.3升到6.8。其它的，全都合格”他把报告内容给我讲解。
听后，轻松好多。只是老毛病。去年，先生以及很多亲戚朋友，已经开始服用维他命D。我可算迟了一年后才要服用。三个月前，胆固醇低，因为服用胆固醇药。把胆固醇药停止服用三个月，问题又出现。看来要继续地服用它。血糖一直都算比较高，但是，没有到达要用药物来作出控制。
“已经把饮食的习惯改变很多，把含有糖分的食物减少进食，有什么办法再加以改善？”我顺口向他请教。
“你每天吃的东西是什么？”他问我。
“早餐，吃一碗cereal加纯豆浆；午餐，把剩下来的旧菜加热吃掉；晚饭，吃一碗白米饭以及大量的青菜、小量的肉类、鱼等”我告诉他。
“试把麦片代替cereal，不是方便麦片而要煮那种，把白米饭减少一半，多吃青菜、豆腐等食物来把肚子填饱。白米饭、米粉、面条含糖分比较高，少吃为佳。把饮食的习惯再改变一下，三个月后，再抽血化验。假如，效果不得以改善，才把药方开给你。给你多一次机会”带着幽默、慷慨的语气跟我说。
“不要过分忧虑，到了这个年纪，大部分人都会患上了这些小毛病。它们不会致命，还有药物把它们控制。放心吧！”当我离开的时候，跟我说了几句安慰话。
以前，还年轻的时候，每天进食三碗大米饭以上、很多肉类、不健康的食物等等，但是，身体可以把它们全部处理得很妥当，健康没事。现在，懂得注意卫生、健康饮食，反而身体出现了那么多的问题。年纪大，机能退化，毛病多多。正如好像一部旧的汽车，需要多加以检查、保养，才能开得动。胆固醇高、血糖高、维他命D底等的现象，不会感觉出来。当它们发展到某一个程度的时候，会导致心脏病、糖尿病、骨质疏松等致命的病例。验血，可以看到身体的小毛病，把生活习惯加以改善，把药物适当地服用，把它们尽早控制，防止它们继续地恶化，发展成为致命、无药可救的大病。
虽然，身体健康，没有感到不适，依然按照惯例，每年去把血抽出做化验。那是明智的做法。验血，可以检查出小毛病。然后，把它们加以处理。免得，致命的大病形成。随着年纪日益增大，身体各方面的机能日益退化，要寻求药物来作补救。对医生，要有一定的信任、合作，听从他的指示，把身体调理好。要面对现实。人一定会变老，不能够永远地年轻。药物是老年人的同伴。要服用它们的时候，不要带着抗拒、闷闷不乐的心情，而开开心心地服用它们。只有这样，才能够活得轻松、快乐。
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