Well, had a bit of medical excitement this morning. I had stayed home so that the HVAC guy could come check out the air conditioners for their pre-summer inspection, and when I got to work I developed a shooting pain in my right arm and shoulder.

Over the next hour or so it spread both up my neck and into my throat and jaw, and down my back and into my chest, making it hard to breathe. I was nervous enough that I made a doctor’s appointment for later that afternoon, but when describing the symptoms to the guys at the office, they suggested I go their sooner.

My blood pressure was fine (110/70) and the EKG was normal, so he did some other tests to try and determine what was causing the pain. In one if them he had me relax my neck muscles while he pressed down on my head (kind of like trying to reset a Rock’em Sock’em Robot). The pain went away, so the assumption is that when I was emptying out the upstairs closet so the HVAC guy could get to the unit in the attic, I must have twisted funny. They told me to take a lot of Advil and get some rest, and after I nap a feel a little better, but far from perfect.

Speaking of perfection, since I went in today I was able to get a look at my blood work labs from Friday. My cholesterol went from 146 to 116, and more amazingly, my triglycerides went from 227 to 66 (that’s sixty-six, not one sixty-six). Of the two readings still out of range, one was my HDL cholesterol, which was up to 38 mg/dL from 34, but still a little lower that the 40 they like to see.

My cholesterol ratio, however, went from 4.3 (below average risk) to 3.1 (less than 1/2 average risk) so I’m not going to worry about it too much. A little more omega-3 fat should take care of that.

The second abnormal reading was my bilirubin level of 2.4 mg/dL. The last time it was 2.5, so it is rather steady. I think this indicates that I have Gilbert’s Syndrome.

Bilirubin is the substance that turns urine yellow, so when people accuse me of being full of piss I guess it is close to the mark. Elevated levels, especially after fasting (which is what I do before these tests), is indicative of the syndrome. There is no real downside at these levels and the upside seems to be a reduction in cardiovascular disease, so go me.

Finally, while I am weighed at the doctor’s office fully clothed, so there can be some variation, the last time I got on his scale I was 235. Today, I was 184, for a weight loss of 51 pounds.

Go me.