A Fun Afternoon

I went to see a doctor this morning. She poked and prodded my foot, asking several times if I'd had a fever. No, I hadn't. She asked a few more questions and then took my blood pressure. Apparently it's high. 120/100. At home my BP is on the low end of normal. I find it odd, though, that if it is a BP issue, why both feet wouldn't be swollen.

She asked if I was nervous as that can affect BP. I told her I wasn't. But it was really muggy today and I was hot when I saw her. I have no idea if heat and humidity can affect BP. I did some reading and allergy meds can raise BP. I've been taking some allergy pills but didn't take any today. I have to see her again Thursday morning so I'll mention the allergy pills.

About all she told me was to not eat too much salt, which I don't. I don't add salt to my cooking and I don't eat much for salty foods. But I've been drinking a bit more coke than normal and it's got a lot of sodium in it.

Going to the doctor here is a very different experience from back home.

I walked into the clinic and told the receptionist I wanted to see a doctor. I waited for about 5 minutes and then was invited into the examination room by the doctor herself. After her examination, she wrote out my prescription (cream for irritation and tablets to reduce the swelling) on an official piece of paper along with my name, age and BP reading. As far as I can tell from reading different blogs, this is my medical file and it's up to the patient to keep track of their own info. I went to the front desk and paid the 300 peso fee. Then I had to take the paper she gave me and try to find my meds.

It's a good thing that I've done a lot of reading on Yolisto and many blogs. It came as no surprise to me that I had to go to 5 different pharmacies to get what I needed.

This afternoon a couple who live in the complex hosted a meet and greet down at the pool. It started at 2pm and went until 11:30. Yes, we were among the last ones to leave...lol.

They provided hamburgers and hot dogs, some side dishes and some liquor. The invitation said people could bring food as well. There was a ton of food, all delicious. There are quite a few residents that we hadn't met yet, so it was nice to be able to put faces to names we'd heard.

The couple who hosted teach tango lessons, so they did a few dances for us. Great food, great weather, great music and friends, both old and new, made for a very enjoyable afternoon and evening.