Activators beware! - update

Well thanks to work changes and a spell of relative inactivity due to a back injury my fitness levels are at an all time low, so I suspect Gerald will again be kicking his heels waiting for me, gasping and panting, to bring up the rear… Just like the old days :-s

Probably a good job our next outing is the relatively untaxing Walton Hill :wink: Whatever, it’ll be a real treat to be out again :smile:

73 de Paul G4MD

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The next test of “the new me” will be on the four summits near Moffat between 28th and 30th December. Hopefully the weather will be reasonable as there are some lengthy track walks and we will probably be walking in the dark on our return to the car on 29th.

It now seems to be clear that the reason that I had the blood clot and heart attack last year was due to a high homocysteine level. I am now on vitamins B6, B12 and folic acid to reduce the level. More tests to come. Thankfully the NHS have been great and with the help of the Chemical Pathologist at the local hospital, I am now on a statin that I can tolerate which is having a great effect in reducing my bad cholesterol.

Overall while I am (according to the Chemical Pathologist) “one of the unfortunates” in that the cause of my ills was mainly genetic, it is evident that keeping reasonably fit through participation in SOTA has helped me to quickly recover, first from the heart attack last year and then from the triple bypass this year.

Paul and I look forward to working many of you during our outing. In the meantime, have an enjoyable Christmas.

73, Gerald

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I’m lucky… the cheapo statins work OK for me. I do miss grapefruit now I can’t eat them. Never mind.

Anyway, I may have to be out seeing what you are doing to bag some completes. Especially Scaw’d Fell SS-142. I can’t believe it’s 11 years since I was there. You can tell it’s a bit of a trek… 6 activations in 15 years!

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Ask your GP for Pravastatin which tolerates Grapefruit - I did.

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It is one of the ones we left out in 2016.
Good luck, Gerald; don’t push it too far!
73,
Rod

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It’s not only statins that interact badly with grapefruit. My Lercanidipine blood pressure tablets (calcium channel blockers) carry a similar warning about grapefruit and grapefruit juice.

73,
Walt (G3NYY)

Well I only want grapefruit because I can’t have it. Typical. You also hear lots of stories of people who have issues with the different statins so I decided to stick with one that works and doesn’t have any side-effects I’m aware of because there a plenty of side-effects with the rest of the concoction of drugs I take! I may ask at my next diabetic MOT.

I noticed or I’d have been looking for a complete. Gerald likes his 2m SSB and that means I can go out up any local lump with just my old FT290Mk1. Doing a bit of hill-topping “classic” style seems a fine Christmas time activity, much like eating Mince Pies etc. If it was 2m AM it would “vintage” style. Separate TX / RX with a rock bound TX and tuning high-to-low would be “veteran” style. (To steal the old-car brigades classifications.)

Will certainly keep an ear out for you Andy. At least these four summits have the SUW as part the route which should help with the walks, but as you say there i’s a lot of track to cover to bag Scaw’d Fell. I am really looking forward to getting out again… no hills have been climbed in anger since the outing with Paul W6PNG / M0SNA in October.

As for statins and grapefruit, well I can certainly live without the grapefruit. Plenty more fruit on the tree… as so to speak. I have tried Atorvastatin, Pravastatin and Simvastatin, all resulting in muscle aches, headaches and nausea. Now I am on Rosuvastatin and although prescribed just 10mg on alternate days, I can only tolerate 5mg, but as I said before the results are amazing. Well worth the occasional brain ache and fuzzy head… thankfully Paul will see me to the correct summits! :wink:

73, Gerald

P.S. For those medically minded, my overall cholesterol is now 4.1 (from 4.3) within the LDL element having dropped from 2.6 to 2.0 in 3 months. This is all about lowering the risk of a future event… SOTA is definitely part of the treatment!

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Latest update:

Homocysteine level down to 11.8 from 14.5 courtesy of the Vitamin B tablets and now in acceptable range. Hopefully this will go lower with time.
Cholesterol level down to 3.7 from 4.1 (now tolerating the prescribed dosage of statin)
LP(a) result normal
Result - I have been discharged from the care of the Chemical Pathology department! I am now hospital-free!

All I need now is the GP practice to poke their nose in… :grin:

Good result, Gerald, keep going on that downward path of the cholesterol, it has a very good effect on the attention paid by the medicos. They lose interest when you are in that zone.

73 Andrew VK1DA/VK2UH