Healthy

I have been deemed healthy by my doctor after having my first Medicare Wellness Assessment. Not quite an annual physical, because there wasn’t much laying of hands, only weight, blood pressure, and his listening to a few deep breaths. Mostly Q&A about how I feel and whether I drink too much or exercise too little. No and no. The bottom line is that my core continues to be healthy and my extremities are fraying. I’m pleased that I am so healthy, even without adding, for a person my age. I’m disappointed/annoyed/sad there don’t seem to be any remedies for my aching hands and sore shoulders. The pain is enough to make it hard to sleep sometimes, but not enough to do much more than take the occasional ibuprofen. Nothing on the horizon for more help for osteoarthritis, nor for tinnitus, my two major complaints. I agreed to a bone density test, nixed a mammogram, and settled for a noninvasive colon cancer screening. I’m concerned about osteoporosis. Living long makes that a certainty. Cancer doesn’t have time to finish me off unless it is really aggressive. And that’s fine. I’ve also resisted the pneumonia vaccine, planning to die of pneumonia when I’m 93. Could be true.

The same day I was feeling so grateful for my good genes and great luck, I heard from Patten that one of his friends died on New Year’s Day. A young man who made many, many bad choices and did not seem to learn from them. As his dad said years ago, he’s got to be tough if he’s going to be stupid. He might not have been the brightest, but drugs certainly dulled his decision making ability. My heart is broken for his family, and for our son, who tried to help, but then had the courageous sense to tell his friend that he could not be an aide to his self-destruction. Really a brave and difficult decision to step away.