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Welcome to the Danger Zone!

dangerousdon said:
Right now it is October 23rd. So...you know...just a little over two months away. The doc was talking about inducing a couple weeks early because Richelle is considered "Advanced Maternal Age." I have called her that a couple of times...but believe me...it doesn't go well.

If this whole thing wasn't real before...it just got REAL.
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I recall that when we had our second child. We were in shock. Take it with a grain of salt. I am pretty sure they consider 21 advance maternal age at this point. If left up to the OB/GYN community, they'd be handing out AARP cards with every child-birth.

Perhaps it's preparation...hmm. Nothing makes you feel old quite like a snotty teenager. I'm learning that one the hard way.
 
mrdoug said:
I recall that when we had our second child. We were in shock. Take it with a grain of salt. I am pretty sure they consider 21 advance maternal age at this point. If left up to the OB/GYN community, they'd be handing out AARP cards with every child-birth.

Perhaps it's preparation...hmm. Nothing makes you feel old quite like a snotty teenager. I'm learning that one the hard way.
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I can understand me being old. Not that I am actually old...but being 47 and a first time Dad is a little out of the ordinary. The wife on the other hand is in her late 30s. Yeah...I guess she is older than the average 24 year old...but women are having babies a lot later in life now. In fact...the rate of women in their 50s has exploded the last four years or so. And yes...some of that is in vitro...there is a huge number of women in their 50s having natural pregnancies. Medicine, technology, and personal changes in nutrition are the results of this.
 
dangerousdon said:
being 47 and a first time Dad is a little out of the ordinary.
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My older brother became a father in his 40s as well. He and his wife are great parents, and their maturity no doubt has played a major part in that. The most successful parents are ready, willing, and able to take on their new roles. As for "advanced maternal age", yeah, you might want to back off on that!
 
Razor: Merkur - Progress
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock Super Platinum (2nd Shave)
Soap/Cream: CBL Master Barber - Dragon's Blood (Shave # 6)
Brush: Graydog Brush in Cocobolo with Maggard Razors 26mm Mixed 70/30 Badger and Boar
The Penultimate Aftershave - Thayers Cucumber Witch Hazel
The Ultimate Aftershave: Chatillon Lux - Champs de Lavande

A quick one today...for some reason I a running a tad late for work. Still using the CBL Master Barber Soap and am really dialing this thing in. It's good stuff...it is some really good stuff. Two passes today and I ended up with a close comfortable shave. I'll look like I need to shave again by noon...but it is, what it is.

The Danger Zone

The wife still has the hives and her morale is quickly deteriorating. She is not happy and it's going pretty rough for her.

Her morale is also in part because she saw a dietician yesterday and became completely overwhelmed. I won't go into particulars because of time now...but I will explain later. I don't have a lot of use or respect for many dieticians...especially when they are a middle aged man in their 50s named Nate trying to give advise to a pregnant woman with no regard to everything that is going on. I will say that and one other thing...HOT DOG BUNS ARE NOT A GOOD SOURCE OF STARCHY CARBOHYDRATES!!!

I hope the Cadre has a great day today!
 
I'm sorry to hear that the hives have not subsided and now your wife is having to deal with a dietician. I agree with you that I am not a big fan of dieticians. I hope it all gets better soon!
 
Razor: Merkur - Progress
Blade: Gillette 7 O'clock Super Platinum (3rd Shave)
Soap/Cream: CBL Master Barber - Dragon's Blood (Shave # 7)
Brush: Graydog Brush in Cocobolo with Maggard Razors 26mm Mixed 70/30 Badger and Boar
The Penultimate Aftershave - Humphreys Witch Hazel
The Ultimate Aftershave: Chatillon Lux - A&E Post Shave Serum No. 3

This was yesterday's shave. I had a cardiology appointment first thing in the morning so all I had time for was to shave and get out of the house. The shave was pretty good. I kind of rushed through it but got a great shave. The CBL Master Barber Soap is going strong. I have determined that if you give this soap just a bit more water than you think...it improves the slickness, performance and the post shave feel. A really good soap base for sure. I am still partial to Chris' Premium Version with Hemp Oil...but this soap is really for someone who wants that old time soap with a bit more of the fun stuff in it.

Three passes without incident. Got a really nice DFS. I decided to keep the scent light for the Doctor and her staff and went with the A&E Post shave serum that has a very light Adventus type scent.

The Danger Zone

The wife went back to the doctor on Friday and I guess her doctor took pity on her because she finally gave her a shot of something and a some stuff to take home. The shot and other stuff worked swiftly and other than some dried up remnant of the hives on the skin...the wife seems to have recovered from the allergic reaction.

Had my very first visit with a Cardiologist yesterday. I didn't think I had anything wrong with me...but my primary actually suggested I visit one (about two years ago) and since I ain't getting younger...I felt it was time to see if there was anything of concern with the old ticker. First of all, I convinced myself that this doctor was going to be rigid and regimented...set in stone...it was her way or the highway kind of attitude. Which is not the kind of doctor I want. I want a doctor that will sit down and have a conversation with me...listen to my concerns...and not want to prescribe a pill at the first sign of anything. I need to stop doing that to myself. Because when the Doc came in she was anything but what I had in my head. She was very approachable, consistently asked if I had any questions...asked me questions...allowed me to say what was on my mind...and most importantly...she didn't try rushing me out of the office. I learned that she was a mother in her early forties, has two kids, and is an Air-Force veteran. Let's just say that I was impressed with her.

Anyway...I need to educate myself better on matter of the heart...specifically the anatomy of it. Because I couldn't tell you what chamber was what and what wall or valve was doing what. I will say that she said from the best that she can tell, my heart is healthy and is doing what it is supposed to do. She did indicate that a wall in one of my chambers was slightly thicker than they normally are. I asked if it was from something I did to it or if it was something that I was born with. She said it was something that I was likely born with. Either way...she said that it wasn't abnormally thicker. It was just something she noticed.

From the ECG/EKG everything she saw was okay. She did say something about a tilt of deviation on an axis (?) that might indicate I have sleep apnea. I have never been diagnosed with sleep apnea, but this isn't really a surprise to me at all. My wife has told me that I used to often stop breathing at night. When I lost all my weight...it seemed to become less frequent...but I still snore and the wife has said that I still stop breathing from time to time. So yeah...I was pretty sure that I had sleep apnea. Anyway...the doc wants to order me a sleep test. I guess they do them at home now. So...we will see how that goes. Either way...it looks like I might need to be really aggressive at losing more weight to see if that corrects it. I really need to loose about 30 more pounds anyway...and this just might kick start it a bit.

Additionally, the doc ordered a Coronary Calcium Scan. I have read about these for a while now and they seem to be pretty reliable. My only concern with it is that it is a CT Scan and therefore delivers a certain amount of radiation. I know it is a small amount and it is only once...but even small doses of radiation can disrupt or damage DNA. I'm still going through with it...but I need to see what I can do to mitigate possible radiation damage. I know certain antioxidants and polyphenols help with this...but I just need to figure out exactly what.

Oh...wow...just looked at this post and realized I have been rambling on! Sorry guys. In a nutshell...it looks like I have a healthy heart...but we are going to address some potential issues.

I hope the Cadre has a wonderful Tuesday!
 
Well Don, getting a sleep test isn't a bad thing I believe I need one myself. Hope that all works out for you. The radiation bit is a bit troublesome let me know what you figure out on that one...
 
Somnos said:
The radiation bit is a bit troublesome let me know what you figure out on that one...
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woodpusher said:
Losing weight is probably the best thing many North Americans (well, folks everywhere for that matter) can do to improve their overall health. So many other things come into play as a result of carrying some extra poundage.
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Thanks guys for reading. The antioxidant thing is interesting. And it seems that there is real science behind it all. I just read this interesting study: Antioxidant Diet Supplementation Starting 24 Hours after Exposure Reduces Radiation Lethality

It's more on the lethal doses of radiation and is a study in mice...but I looked at the antioxidants they used and they are pretty much the same thing that other sites I am looking at are using. Life Extension is a company that has put out some really good and reliable information. They have this article that I am relying on right now as I sift through other articles and blogs: Protect your DNA from CT Scans and X-rays

Either way...it's all very interesting.

The weight thing is really key here. I have come along way from where I was. Lost 70 pounds in 2018 (I was at 330 and got to just under 260...now I am buck up 15 pounds) and have improved my health remarkably. But I still have a healthy amount of abdominal fat (maybe I should call it Abominable Fat... 🤪 ). And I would really like to get down to about 240. I know it is achievable and not an unrealistic goal. I just have to set out and do it. But yeah...losing more weight would likely help me out...a lot.
 
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