Blood Pressure...

Grant said:
Quick opinion needed.
I have mentioned organ donation previously & posted a heavily edited portion of a video.
In the interim I have been talking to both Warren's wife (warren being the organ donor in the video), as well as the organ donation foundation.
I have obviously been given permission to use and publish the full video.

What I really looking for is comment on the "description" of the video.
I've attempted to make it as short and understandable to all.

This is not an "easy watch", and might be deemed by some "not suitable for work".
I'll leave it listed as "public" for the next 12hrs for the purpose of gaining opinion, then make it "private" again around 10.30am tomorrow morning.

**Pls DM me with any opinion.

Click to expand...
It is a bit long, but gives the full context so i think its ok.
I would cut out the part about organs buried in the ground and insecticide.
Just focus on the positives.
Don't guilt trip people into stuff.
The positives tell a far better story of what is achievable with organ donation.
 
Grant said:
Quick opinion needed.
I have mentioned organ donation previously & posted a heavily edited portion of a video.
In the interim I have been talking to both Warren's wife (warren being the organ donor in the video), as well as the organ donation foundation.
I have obviously been given permission to use and publish the full video.

What I really looking for is comment on the "description" of the video.
I've attempted to make it as short and understandable to all.

This is not an "easy watch", and might be deemed by some "not suitable for work".
I'll leave it listed as "public" for the next 12hrs for the purpose of gaining opinion, then make it "private" again around 10.30am tomorrow morning.

**Pls DM me with any opinion.

Click to expand...
thanks for the input folks.

video is now private, not public.
willing to share the link with anyone specifically interested - simply moving it out of public domain for now.
 
Fcon_Vpro said:
It is a bit long, but gives the full context so i think its ok.
I would cut out the part about organs buried in the ground and insecticide.
Just focus on the positives.
Don't guilt trip people into stuff.
The positives tell a far better story of what is achievable with organ donation.
Click to expand...
thanks for that - your opinion is congruent to that of others.
all of value.
 
Even Dischem use the el cheapo BP machines, if the nurse is trained properly how to use a manual sphygmomanometer then that's 100%. You really need to spend a lot on a machine to get a very good one, otherwise the readings can be all over the place.

And when has a nurse ever asked when you last had a meal, cigarette or exercised etc? They just sit you down and measure you in 2 seconds, and do they measure both arms? I've been sitting on the bed and your arm hanging down by your side and the doc measures you.

It all seems to be luck of the draw. I just went out and bought an Omron BP, I will not waste money on any Clicks or the type no name brand, you are wasting your time. I suppose the best bet would be to go to a doc, let him measure you manually and you take your machine with you to see the difference, do it three times.

Oh and I've never had a doc / nurse ever measure my BP 3 times for an average reading... ever
 
Sideshow Bob said:
Thanks. Does it have a name on packet or is it just like Pick n pay No Name brand ? If it has some kind of name, please let me know and I can enquire. Photo of packet or tablet strip would be lekker. :)

I am seriously looking to cut down on costs and every little bit helps. R55 per month copayment in this case.
Click to expand...
In my experience It's going to depend on what your dr prescribed for you.
I haven't been offered certain store "white label" variants.
I'm on perindopril and the 2 brands covered by discovery are unicorns version and sun pharmas Ran-perindopril.

I also know that my dr knows discovery well and knows what they will cover and won't.
 
Sideshow Bob said:
Do you know exactly what did your doc prescribe? Or do you just insist on generic ONLY from pharmacy so as not to incur copayment?
Click to expand...
a quick note on generics:
they are not always identical to the original, nor are they required to be.
the generic has to contain the same active ingredient (and it's strength) as the original, but they may & sometimes contain additional ingredients (dyes, filler material etc).

for the most part generics are equally good as the original, just keep an eye open for products out of both india and china.
india generally has a good reputation, but there are those who produce a counterfeit of the generic - more so with china.

generics out of both india and china are not imported in large quantities tho.
there is also a bit of a safety net here whereby the larger pharmaceutical retailers have a preference for purchasing volume from local sources such as aspen pharmacare
 
Fcon_Vpro said:
In my experience It's going to depend on what your dr prescribed for you.
I haven't been offered certain store "white label" variants.
I'm on perindopril and the 2 brands covered by discovery are unicorns version and sun pharmas Ran-perindopril.

I also know that my dr knows discovery well and knows what they will cover and won't.
Click to expand...
Thanks. My doctor prescribed Valsartan (he looked it up on his tablet and told me copayment won't be required) but dischem gave me zomovek saying it is generic but I pay about R55 if I recall.

I will ask around in Clicks etc.
 
Last edited:
Wrath of Khan MD said:
Oh and I've never had a doc / nurse ever measure my BP 3 times for an average reading... ever
Click to expand...
Why should they do that? 5 minutes doc visit - R550 - R750 is going rate and if they waste 1 more minute on you, then it is 2 patients less per hour. Time is money, bru.

:laugh: :p
 
Sideshow Bob said:
Thanks. My doctor prescribed Valsartan (he looked it up on his tablet and told me copayment won't be required) but dischem gave me zomovek saying it is generic but I pay about R55 if I recall.

I will ask around in Clicks etc.
Click to expand...
TLDR: Ask your Dr Is if Valsartan is the correct product/treatment for you in your blood pressure treatment journey?
My first Dr prescribed something that wasn't considered the correct treatment by Discovery and so I paid. When second Dr changed my medication to what Discovery consider the correct treatment, Discovery covered in full.

CONTEXT:
I don't know if this helps but my first Dr prescribed bisoprolol and I always had a co-payment(Possibly even a full payment because I dont think the amount was in line with what my medical aid said).
When my first Dr moved to a new practice that was too far away, i decided to find a new Dr closer to me.
The new Dr told me that Discovery wouldn't cover the bisoprolol because its not considered a 1st line/level blood pressure treatment.
She changed me over to perindopril which she said Discovery consider a 1st line treatment and that medication they covered in full.
I still take bisoprolol but at a lower dose and still pay for it but the perindopril is covered in full.

When I was only on bisoprolol, my blood pressure never really improved, it just helped me with some anxiety stuff related to a racing heart.
After about a year on perindopril, my blood pressure came down to normal and as long as I take it, i never seem to have blood pressure issues anymore.
 
110/75 in morning and 121/78 just now. Sounds good and is in line with continued (even if slow) weight loss but I am skeptical of this and will buy a conventional BP machine next year.
 
Sideshow Bob said:
Thanks, I went to Dischem yesterday and asked them to search for any BP meds that will need 0 co-payment. First she said that she can't search like that and then I insisted and she reluctantly said that all BP meds require co-payments.

I think this is some kind of scam where our co-payment covers full cost of original medicine.
Click to expand...
Hmmm - this wasn't my experience. I was on Tesar, for which I had to fork out R100/month co-payment on our DH plan. GP prescribed Telpres, which DH said didn't have a co-payment, and I haven't had to pay in. All these done via Dischem.
 
Chatted to a gp again yesterday. Upped the candesartan from 12mg to 16mg this morning.


2a5affe248cd8959004e8d5c919c10fd.jpg
 
Sinbad said:
Chatted to a gp again yesterday. Upped the candesartan from 12mg to 16mg this morning.


2a5affe248cd8959004e8d5c919c10fd.jpg
Click to expand...
good heavens - at my worst my bp was 220/140 - heart rate at about 95.

after being opened up and a few parts replaced - and the meds that are now part of my life, bp has been consistent for the last year at around 120/90 - heart rate averaging around 65bpm.

your heart rate is misbehaving somewhat !!
 
Grant said:
good heavens - at my worst my bp was 220/140 - heart rate at about 95.

after being opened up and a few parts replaced - and the meds that are now part of my life, bp has been consistent for the last year at around 120/90 - heart rate averaging around 65bpm.

your heart rate is misbehaving somewhat !!
Click to expand...
I'm very unfit - and I exercised this morning so HR is still coming down.

RHR is in the high 70s atm.
 
Sinbad said:
I'm very unfit - and I exercised this morning so HR is still coming down.

RHR is in the high 70s atm.
Click to expand...
and there was me thinking you were as fit as a fiddle.
yea, relative unfitness will spike your heart faster than khulubuse zuma at an "all you can eat" buffet table.
 
Sinbad said:
Chatted to a gp again yesterday. Upped the candesartan from 12mg to 16mg this morning.


2a5affe248cd8959004e8d5c919c10fd.jpg
Click to expand...

Weird thing about Candesartan is that a LOT of people report their BP going the wrong way the higher the dose goes. Like it’s completely counterintuitive. I noticed similar when I was on it that my BP actually dropped when I went from 8mg to 4mg (half a tablet). Another thing to be mindful of while on it is your potassium levels, and how it might screw with your other salts, because it eventually screws with your kidneys, too.
 
The Voice said:
Weird thing about Candesartan is that a LOT of people report their BP going the wrong way the higher the dose goes. Like it’s completely counterintuitive. I noticed similar when I was on it that my BP actually dropped when I went from 8mg to 4mg (half a tablet). Another thing to be mindful of while on it is your potassium levels, and how it might screw with your other salts, because it eventually screws with your kidneys, too.
Click to expand...

I had a full set of bloods after being on it 2 months, no issues at all.

Even potassium is fine. I used to be on electrolyte supplements for cramps because the ramipril was depleting my potassium, have stopped that completely.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X