cardiologist

[Christine]

Gotta love getting old- when you have more doctors' phone #s in your contacts than family members'.....

Anyway. Because I keep hearing that Graves' disease means heart trouble, figured I'd get the ticker checked out. I can't see giving up coffee and exercise.

Picked a doc based on proximity, got an app't right away. Told him about anemia, high heart rate, Graves', palpitations, etc.

A few years ago, while riding a trail with an orthopedic student, he gave me an armchair diagnosis of a left ventricle leak, when I mentioned palpitations/coughing. Turns out I do have a leak in the left valve.......and two others! 75% of my valves are leaky.
Luckily, they're mild-moderate. People can be born with this stuff, nothing I did caused it.

He didn't seem worried about the Graves'. However, he feels that the high heart rate and such is a result of dehydration. He picked up a bottle of rubbing alcohol and said, "You know the Poland Spring bottles about this size? You need to drink 20 of them a day..... that's two-zero, 20."

I picked up the bottle and checked the label- 16oz. "Seriously?? 20 pints A DAY?! What about hyponatremia?"

"That won't happen."

"What about coffee? Iced tea? Bubble tea?"

"Bubble tea! That's a LOT of sugar!" he laughed. "Coffee is fine, just drink extra water. Iced tea is okay, but is also a bit of a diuretic."

"I'll never be able to leave the HOUSE!! How is it possible to drink that much?? I thought 8 glasses was more than enough. Is that an average day or only when I work out?"

"Everybody's different. For somebody as tall* as you, with your low blood pressure and high heart rate, you need that much. More when you work out."

He went on to say that patients who follow this report excellent results. So I did the math: If I'm awake 16hrs/day, that's a pint glass of water every 45min.

Sucks. I hate water. BUT, it beats the crap out of pills. As he likes to say, "It's FREE." Yeah, but I'll be running to the bathroom just as many times a day.

And look, it's time for my fourth glass of water since coming home already. Oddly enough, I have yet to use the bathroom.

*I'm not tall; just average height, but this is an Asian neighborhood so I'm taller than his average patient.

[todayilearned]

What's the weather like in your area?

Starting to get warmer.

Do what I do and carry around a water bottle. There's plenty of water fountains everywhere I go.

[rider9]

There is no way I would drink rubbing alcohol. [sorry, couldn't help it]

20 bottles a day? That sounds like overkill to me, but then I have trouble with dehydration.

My daughter probably drinks close to that. When she is home, we go through three times as much water as just me and the Mrs.

[Christine]

Isn't that around 2-1/2 gallons a day?? Can't be right. But I'm not a cardiologist, nor did I stay in a Holiday Inn Express anytime in the recent past. WTF do I know.

Maybe he figures I'll only get about half that, so he inflates the amount? Dunno. I don't think so.

Oh yeah, on Monday I'll go get a heart monitor to wear for a day.

I'm still trying to get my head around the Rx for water. He wouldn't write me a prescription for free bottled water, unfortunately.

[Vayinafash]

When it comes to the heart, suggest a second opinion. Look for a cardiologist at a university hospital affiliated with a medical school. Ask around and look on website and find out who specializes in your condition. You want to find someone smart. If you are within 3 or 4 hours of Mass General in Boston, I would go there.

[Christine]

It does seem too simple to be true, so a second opinion will be sought. Though hydrating a bit more can't be so bad.

[MikeBiker]

Coors Light is just like water. Just saying, that's all.

[Argentius]

I've been a little absent from here lately, but, WHY exactly is it that you're meant to drink your body weight in H20?

Yours truly drinks what he feels like is a stupid amount of water, and it "only" amounts to 1-1.5 gallons / day...

[erik1245]

See if you can get a sports doctor, or at least someone who has experience with cycling/high-intensity sports.

A few years ago, I went into the ER with chest pains. It was nothing serious -- doctor concluded it was pericarditis caused/irritated by a virus. Luckily, I got a doctor who also rides quite a bit, so he knew not to be concerned by my low HR or the amount of blood my heart pumps per beat (a lot more than normal people). He also told me that it was alright to get back on the bike a few days after the cardiac catheterization he performed.

Not saying that water isn't a bad thing, though. I carry a water bottle with me to class and around campus all day and everything, and I just feel better and more energetic than I did before I started carrying water around. I still drink about the same amount of water while on the bike as I did before I started carrying water, though. Roughly 3/4 bottle (21oz bottle) per hour.

[PhotonFreak]

Coors Light is just like water. Just saying, that's all.

Careful with that though. You have to make sure the Rockies turn blue, if not you can actually taste the Coors

I've been a little absent from here lately, but, WHY exactly is it that you're meant to drink your body weight in H20?

Yours truly drinks what he feels like is a stupid amount of water, and it "only" amounts to 1-1.5 gallons / day...

I don't get this either, if Christine already has low blood pressure then drinking (and peeing out) multiple gallons of plain water I don't see how that can't cause hyponatremia...

[MB1]

Gotta love getting old- ...

What's with all you young kids calling yourself old?!?

BTW take care of yourself.

BTW2 20 Pints of water a day???

[PhotonFreak]

What's with all you young kids calling yourself old?!?

I'm not sure what peoples' ages are around here, but I and most of my circle of friends started considered themselves "getting old" once they passed the quarter-century mark.

[Henry Porter]

Isn't that around 2-1/2 gallons a day?? Can't be right. But I'm not a cardiologist, nor did I stay in a Holiday Inn Express anytime in the recent past. WTF do I know.

Maybe he figures I'll only get about half that, so he inflates the amount? Dunno. I don't think so.

Oh yeah, on Monday I'll go get a heart monitor to wear for a day.

I'm still trying to get my head around the Rx for water. He wouldn't write me a prescription for free bottled water, unfortunately.

I can't speak for him but I would assume he inflated the amount due to the fact that very few (less than that maybe) actually follow physician's directions.

[MB1]

... I and most of my circle of friends started considered themselves "getting old" once they passed the quarter-century mark.

What does that make us who were around when Truman was President?

[10ae1203]

What does that make us who were around when Truman was President?

retired?

[kykr13]

I'm not sure what peoples' ages are around here, but I and most of my circle of friends started considered themselves "getting old" once they passed the quarter-century mark.

Eggzactly. It was all straight downhill from there.

[Christine]

I didn't say I was OLD, just that I'm gettin' old. Which, of course, beats the only other alternative.

I drank about six pints of water last night before bed, and had to pee at least that much. There's no way I can keep this up.

Supposed to put on a heart monitor next week. I just hate all this testing/visiting only to learn there's not much of a problem.......I mean, I *prefer* that there isn't a problem obviously.

[Scrapr]

Christine

I'm having many of the same issues. W/o the Graves & leaky valves. I have been dehydrated over the last month. Had to go once to the clinic & once the the ER for fluid IVs. Once topped off I'm great. I found that just straight water could not catch up w/my dehydration. I got dehydrated (again) and used electrolyte to try to catch up. Gatorade worked. I was drinked 2 20 oz/day. That got me back to normal.

Going in about 2 weeks for a colonoscopy & upper GI scope to see if there's anything else. Oh, I'm anemic too. So iron pills. I'm 56 y/o

[PomPilot]

What does that make us who were around when Truman was President?

Just a touch older than those of us who were born when Eisenhower was President.

[Kurious Oranj]

People generally don't get dehydrated (which by the way is a very misleading word as "dehydration" is as much of a salt problem as it is water problem) unless they sweat excessively as a result of exercise/ambient heat or are losing large amounts of fluid as diarrhea or urine and have limited access to water and electrolytes. A more correct word than dehydration is hypovolemia, i.e. too little volume in the tank where volume consists of water and various solutes, most importantly sodium. It is exceedingly rare to see someone become hypovolemic without having large losses of salt and water as diarrhea and sweat. Once the volume in the vessels gets low, the body senses that through the hypothalamus and kidneys and sends a message out you need to drink more. The kidneys are smart little things, even smarter than cardiologists when it comes to salt and water. Drinking 20 pints of water is lunacy.

If your heart rate is elevated, the first thing that comes to mind is your thyroid being overactive from the Graves disease. As for the valves, I assume you have had an echocardiogram.

I would get another cardiologist. Sorry, but his recommendations are idiotic.

disclaimer: I am not a cardiologist but another kind of -ist. The one you never want to meet...

[PhotonFreak]

I can't speak for him but I would assume he inflated the amount due to the fact that very few (less than that maybe) actually follow physician's directions.

Probably this. Most physicians when reading patient questionnaires about personal habits will [at least] double any number listed for bad habits (such as number of alcoholic beverages or cigarettes consumed per week) and halve any number listed for good habits (such hours of exercise/week*).

They then assume the patient will follow the same logic and respond to doctors orders of drinking 9 liters of water a day by drinking more like 3-4.


*While my cardiologist probably assumes I'm a raging alcoholic and hopelessly addicted to stimulants based on the fact I mentioned I drink a 12oz cup of black coffee daily, and 5-6 beers a week, I think he actually does believe my claims about how much I ride given my crazy low body weight...

[Christine]

Kurious- thank you, I just learned something new today! I'm guessing you're an oncologist. It is probably the Graves causing the high heart rate, but I've always had a high heart rate, even before the diagnosis. That confuses me.

Scrapr- the doc said that Gatorade is most effective after the workout. He explained why but I don't remember all the details.

Would be nice if the doc would just be straight with me rather than grossly inflate the figure, if 10 glasses is the actual goal that's more feasible. I'm not as likely to simply give up altogether.

[rider9]

Christine, here is an example of what not to do:

http://www.nydailynews.com/life-styl...sEnabled=false

[Sylint]

disclaimer: I am not a cardiologist but another kind of -ist. The one you never want to meet...

proctologist?

[EverydayRide]

proctologist?

He's an MD [internist with two sub-specialties] and we have a mutual best friend, who is a ophthalmologist [who wears glasses].