"If My Heart Could Beat It Would Break My Chest"

There's no better way to start a blog than with a reference to the Buffy the Vampire Slayer musical. I will make this quick, because once Oscar stuff starts, I will be unreachable, unless you're dead or on fire, in which case, stop, drop and roll, or stop haunting me.

I had a doctor visit Wednesday, and it cost $150 because I'm uninsured at the moment. Aetna has told me I can be reimbursed. Here's hoping it only takes two weeks, as they said on the phone. My doctor checked my ears, and said they look OK. She wants to do an MRI on my head, though, to be sure. I will be doing that the first week of March.

The real issue was my tachycardia. When I arrived, she had the nurse do my blood pressure and pulse standing first, then sitting. As I have mentioned before, my usual blood pressure is around 90/50, plus or minus 5 each way. My resting pulse is typically in the mid-70s.

Imagine our surprise, then, when standing my BP was about 120/80 and my pulse was 166. That would be a healthy pulse if I were three to six days old. Sitting, my BP was about 140/85 with a pulse of 133. What the hell happened? Suddenly I'm tachycardic and hypertensive?! My blood pressure has never been that high...it's never even been 120/80 before, not even right before surgery!

I'm supposed to be off caffeine and chocolate until they can determine what's causing it. The doctor said it could be dehydration, but I've been drinking eight cups of water each day, and I've only been having on Mountain Dew. Now I'm having water and caffeine-free Mountain Dew, and I'm thanking my lucky stars there is a key lime pie downstairs.

Argh. I think the next time a doctor tells me I have to be off caffeine, (s)he should be required to spend the first 48 hours with me. It's only been since Thursday, and it is not fun. Also, my resting pulse is still between 120 and 130. The highest it's ever been is 223, but that was back before we knew you could make meth out of Sudafed.

Please bring non-chocolate desserts, and many fluids!