Congestive Heart Failure

[oldpilgrim]

Your local hospital may have a support group for CHF. Sounds silly but might have useful information. Also, ask your doctors if you have a "case manager." These are typically RNs who have more time and are just honestly better at explaining things to patients than the average doctor.

this.......... We had one from the VA for my father and have one for my FIL. Extremely helpful.

 

[jeff9366]

I will be 62 in May and for the most part I still feel I am in good health. I am not physically fit by any means, (overweight, high blood pressure, high blood sugar), but I stay active, cut and split my own wood and do other chores around the homestead. I do get winded a little quicker than I use to, but figured that was do to old age and being out of shape.

You are in DENIAL. You are NOT physically fit if you are overweight, have high blood pressure and are diabetic or near diabetic.

Are you taking medication to reduce your high blood pressure? How is your cholesterol?

Diabetes is mostly due to being overweight. Get rid of the potato chips and other salty snacks, leave ice cream in the grocery store, no sodas with sugar, change to low fat milk, reduce red meat consumption, no eating between three healthy meals per day, start walking every evening if the weather is in any condition but rain.

It is not easy but these are necessary life style changes as one ages. I made them. You can make them.

You are stuck with CHF but you can address the complicating factors which are dire individually.

 

[RalphVa]

Congestive heart failure doesn't mean a degenerative disease. It's just that your heart had too much liquid in the sac surrounding it. The reason is because your body wasn't getting rid of liquid, particularly liquid in the lung area.

First thing is to get the weight down. I'm surprised yours didn't come down with it, like happened to me. I was forever cold but was eating every 2 hours like a horse. Still lost 35 #.

The last 3 days, I laid off extra stuff that I love. Down to 179-180 now. Seems to be my normal weight. Was what it was when I married. Lowest it ever got (before CHF) was when the army ran me all over the hills of Texas in medic training.

The previous writer is dead on correct. Get the weight down, and you may no longer be diabetic. I take cinnamon capsules twice/day to try to avoid it, too, because my family genes on both sides are laced with people having type II diabetes.

Ralph

 

[JRobyn]

You are in DENIAL. You are NOT physically fit if you are overweight, have high blood pressure and are diabetic or near diabetic. ....

Lighten up a little bit there Jeff. Broken SAID he was NOT physically fit, but reasonably active. Which is better aerobic exercise, walking or splitting wood?

 

[JDL538]

Start walking a mile and keep adding until you're up to 3 or 4 miles. The faster the better.

 

[MarkF48]

Start walking a mile and keep adding until you're up to 3 or 4 miles. The faster the better.

Make sure your doc is OK with this first.

 

[brokenknee]

Lighten up a little bit there Jeff. Broken SAID he was NOT physically fit, but reasonably active. Which is better aerobic exercise, walking or splitting wood?

Thanks