Category Health & Weight Loss

A Useful Tool for our COVID-19 Toolbox

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Oxygen Saturation Measurement from the Samsung Health App.

So far, I still haven’t smoked during the month of April. No doubt, for me, fear of COVID-19 was a contributing motivation to quit. I’m not delusional enough to think that a few weeks of being smoke-free is going to counteract a lifetime of abusing my lungs but hey, quitting can’t hurt & every little helps, right? And if I find myself without income during these turbulent times, it will certainly help if I’m not financing a smoking addiction too. That said, I know I’ll always be a smoker. Long term abstention is the best I can hope for. Even right now, writing about it, I’d kill for a smoke with my cup of coffee! 😁

A COVID-19 article in yesterday’s New York Times (article link) really caught my attention. SpO2? A pulse oximeter? What’s that & who’s got one of them?

I do! Or at least I had … until an update took it away!

I’m a big Samsung phone fan & I also love the Samsung Health app. Doesn’t every obese smoker want to know how screwed up he is!?! Along with monitoring heart rate, steps, & my lack of exercise (😜), my Samsung Note devices have a built-in pulse oximeter. That sensor used to measure my oxygen saturation & that is what the New York Times article is talking about. Unfortunately, some time back, the function vanished. I don’t know why but a new version of the Samsung Health app overwrote the old & the ability to measure oxygen saturation was gone.

Yesterday, after reading that article, I knew I needed it back. And at the risk of giving my phone a dose of a digital virus, I downloaded an older version of the Samsung Health app from a 3rd party website & I’m now measuring my SpO2 levels on my Samsung Note again. Woohoo!

The pic above shows my current O2 level & that number looks pretty good, well into the green zone. After only 3 weeks of not smoking, my heart rate is down & my oxygen saturation is better than my old “normal”. I’m a lifelong data gatherer. I’m not all that scientific with most of it, I just like to know where things are at, typically, & as a baseline. That way I can see when things are running adrift. If Dr. Levitan is right, this simple little tool on my phone might help me to decide when to call that emergency COVID-19 number to schedule a test. I sometimes worry whether I should, or should not, call to see if I need to get tested. Normally, I try to stay away for the doctor’s office & I run the risk of doing that for too long. Now, if my SpO2 numbers go lower than I’ve historically seen them, even when smoking, I think I’ll be motivated to make the call. I will be keeping my eyes open for further insights on what constitutes a low oxygen saturation number with respect to COVID-19.

Of course, this isn’t the only symptom we need to pay attention to. But monitoring oxygen saturation levels might be one more factor behind getting some of those more stubborn individuals in your life to see their doctor in a timely manner. And it might be useful data to share with your physician. It is just one more tool in our COVID-19 Toolbox.

I don’t want anyone to ruin their phone by going back to an old version of the Samsung Health app from a 3rd party website so please be careful & do your research before you decide to take that route. As an alternative, you can also buy the little finger pulse oximeter gadgets online & at your local drugstores & healthcare outlets. They are relatively inexpensive & they may help you establish a baseline for everyone in your household. No sharing outside the home would be recommended, I’m guessing! Should those baseline numbers change, you’ll know you’re doing the right thing when you call the doctor’s office. Or when you make the call on behalf of that stubborn member of your household!

Just to finish off on a dietary note … how’s that whole weight-loss thing going anyway? Especially now that I’m not smoking since the beginning of the month?

In a word … brutal! LOL

Needless to say, not having the opportunity to stuff a cigarette into my face twenty or more times a day, I’m stuffing all sorts of other things into my mouth instead. I’m like an eating machine & the scale is giving out a loud shriek every morning when I crush it! And to make matters worse, I read a few reports on obesity being a big contributing factor to some folk not fending off the bug well.

Oh well, one thing at a time. And we’ll see what the official weight damage is on the first of May!

Stay safe, all!

PS … if any of you learn anything more about the oxygen saturation thing, as it relates to COVID-19, please let me know.

COVID Cranky!

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Doubling Down on Lockdown!

Okay, I’ve had enough of this nonsense. No, not the social isolation thing, I understand how necessary that is just now. I’m talking about politicians. I’m sick of some of these “representatives of the people” parodies. I wonder if some of them, spouting their anti-the-other-party rhetoric, even believe it themselves. Or is it just a show for their followers? Does everything have to be thought of as an opportunity to snipe at the other guys? How did it come about that we think this is the best way to run a country?

Sure, I understand that we need checks & balances. I get that we need someone reining in the power of those currently in charge. Yes, of course we need contrary perspectives. But this negative, agressive, bitchy, bickering style of party politics is dead to me. I don’t always agree with everything on any one platform anyway. I’d rather cherry-pick my positions on those issues that are of import to me. There ought to be a national voting app for that.

Even on this weekend, a holy time of the year for many, I’m hearing some religious stuff coming out of the mouths of some people that I wouldn’t even buy a used car from. Nor do I believe all the empathic stuff we hear from some of them either. It sounds like preaching from a moral high ground, but sanctimony always has a bit of a smell about it.

That said ….

At the moment, is there just a little less of this BS going on in our political circuses? During this COVID-19 outbreak, does it appear that there’s a touch more sanity? Is there a slight reduction in the level of sniping between sides? Are we more focused in the face of the real problems we have to deal with at the moment? I think some of our politicians, from all the different political parties, are actually working together. I might even be … just a little bit … impressed! Please, please keep it up, this is what I voted for. With a bit of luck, some of this will carry over to whatever normal might be in the post-COVID-19 era.

We’re all going to pay a big price for this war on the corona bug. But if our leaders figure out how to lead, if they remember that they are all, individually & collectively, in the service of the people of our country, there might be something of value to be salvaged from this mess afterwards. If nothing else we might all have a better appreciation for a good healthcare system. And maybe we’ll whine a little less when it comes to paying for it.

Okay, enough of my whining, there are still a lot of things I am grateful for. Though losing weight this month isn’t one of those things. This month, that project is going backwards! Come on now, cut me some slack. I bet I’m not alone in gaining an ounce or two during lockdown?

However …

I have done one other thing this month. Or rather, I’ve not done one other thing this month … I haven’t had a cigarette in the month of April. Not a single one. Not even a puff. No idea if it’ll stick but I’m giving it a try.

Amazing that I’m doing all that & not getting cranky, eh! 😜😁

Now while you can be grateful that you’re not sharing your lockdown space with me, I’m grateful to those who have the dubious honour of having to endure my detox! 🤪😂

Whatever you celebrate … Easter, Passover or Ramadan to come … I wish you all the best. Here’s another big digital, socially-isolated, group hug for us. Stay safe & spread the love around. Send some my way too, please, & maybe I’ll be a little less cranky next time!

Meantime, I’m off to see if anyone hid any Easter eggs round here!!! 😜🐇🐣🥚

Results … Month #21

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Results … Month #21

I got to recycle last month’s graphic, no change for the month. I’m relieved! Almost can’t believe it, in fact. I won’t go on about it, we’re all on lockdown, so you know that it’s a little easier to spend some of that time eating. And my food choices weren’t always the best.

Think I’ll spend today behaving foolishly & then see if I can put some kind of thought into a plan of action tomorrow. Or maybe the day after.

I’d better watch out … if I just let things drift freely for another month of this, they’ll probably just drift in all the wrong directions. And that includes my weight.

As if weight loss wasn’t challenging enough!

Hope you’re all keeping safe & that you have figured out how to thrive under whatever restricted conditions you find yourself living in at the moment.

The Yin & Yang of COVID-19

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We’re an interesting species, are we not? It took a little while for us all to get on the same page with respect to this whole social isolation thing. Thankfully, I think, regard for human life overcame the desire to protect the economy. Most people made it to this perspective, for the most part. Going forward, it will be interesting to see how it unwinds.

If we come up with a vaccine or a cure, better still if we had both, it would be an easier transition back to something resembling normalcy. Perhaps we might even achieve a new, hopefully better, version of normal. It would be nice if we learned from the experience & were better prepared for some future outbreak. Anyone up for improvements & support for our healthcare people & systems at the moment? Might we be a nicer & kinder society afterwards?

The alternative paths are fraught with trepidation. It will be interesting to see what the tipping points might be. And to see who might be trying to put a thumb on the scale along the way. As the virus makes its way through the population, there will be a point where a significant percentage of people will have contracted COVID-19. And recovered. Will this growing group want to remain socially isolated, in order to protect those who have yet to be exposed? At some point, there will be enough of us thinking in a way that might be contrary to our personal feelings on doing what we previously though of as the right thing. The larger the numbers holding such a perspective, the more readily we can join the crowd. While we generally like to see ourselves as loving & kind, sometimes, it is fear that encourages us to be so. Remove the fear for self & our concern for others can diminish too. Replaced by our concerns for our financial health & other matters. Valid concerns, these too.

These days, we are influenced by social influencers on social media. Politicians, musicians, & tacticians from a wide variety places & spaces can get inside our heads. There are so many mounds that can be found to preach a moral story from. Yes, staying home to protect Grandma is valid. So too is getting Jack back to work, so he can feed his family. But what if Jane wants to return to work too, but fears for her life because of an underlying condition? What about making that mortgage payment? Paying the rent? Companies, small & large laying off their people. All devastating worries & legitimate, perspective-altering situations. We can all think for ourselves, of course, but it can’t hurt if we hold on to the better part of our nature, as we make these decisions together.

Individually & collectively, we have some yin & yang going on. In the same way that I can never quite figure out which is the good one, I struggle with trying to figure out if I’m inherently nice, or just being so because it’s serves me better. I have to acknowledge that I would be greatly relieved to find that I’d already had the damn thing & was now immune. But I would, at the very least, wish the same for everyone else. It’s not going to be easy but here’s hoping we can stick with the will of a kind majority, & the rule of law, ’til we get to the other side.

For as long as I’ve been socially isolated though, I’ve had a cough, cold or flu bug. I am doing the social distancing thing by the book. How on earth am I catching these things!?!

One thing I’m not doing well with at the moment is dieting. Tomorrow is the first of a new month & I’m dreading stepping on the scale!

I’m almost questioning my own sincerity now, but I think I hope that you’re all doing okay out there!!! 🤪😉😁

Ten Things I Discovered in Lockdown

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Ten Things I Discovered in Lockdown

1. It seems that it wasn’t that I didn’t have the time to do all those backburner projects … I just didn’t want to do them.

2. Might be the same situation when it comes to getting some exercise.

3. I’m pretty sure that those people who tell me they’re loving retirement are lying.

4. Who knew doorknobs could be this clean!?!

5. And that some politicians could be such doorknobs.

6. You can turn anything from the freezer into an edible meal with pan frying … by adding a can of curry sauce at the end.

7. The internet is even more important than I thought … I never knew you could do this much, right from the couch.

8. I didn’t hoard toilet paper & it still hasn’t run out. Am I not doing it the right way!?! 😜

9. Long charging cables, that reach the couch while in the supine position, are more prone to fail when you most need them.

10. Putting your stuff in the dishwasher still works … and it’s one of the best cures for social isolation!!!

11. My scale has artificial intelligence! The bloody thing knows when I eat chocolate chip banana bread.

12. You start forgetting little things … like how to count! 🤪

How are you guys doing out there? What are you discovering during your shelter in place experience?

A big digital hug to everyone! 🤗

Stay safe & stay home, all y’all & tout le monde.