Monday, October 13, 2008
Health
For the last 3 months, I’ve been on high blood pressure medication. My BP is in the super elevated range.
The medication didn’t work. In fact, my diastolic was around 20 points higher than 3 months ago.
I can probably attribute that to the caffeine and complete lack of sleep I had the night before the appointment.
The doctor prescribed a new medication.
There’s the rub. I don’t want to be on pills for the rest of my life. I don’t care if they’re innocuous little water pills that make me have to go to the bathroom every 30 minutes, or giant horse pills to stave off whatever infection the doctor thinks I might possibly maybe run the risk of hearing about at some point.
However, I think it might be my job getting to me.
Granted, my dietary choices haven’t been stellar for the past 21 months or so, and that can’t help. But I really think that the stress of the job may actually be getting to me.
Don’t get me wrong, I love working with some of the things I do now. I just don’t know if I’m built to handle the responsibilities of the position. Sure, I’m on a team, and I’m no longer on call more than once every 10 weeks. However, now every project is the most important thing since sliced bread. Every change is scrutinized, and watch out if a mistake is made. Our customers are some of the most demanding blood suckers in existence. Unfortunately, that rubs off in our day to day, so that my coworkers are all demanding. Nothing can wait, everything has to be now.
The chances at doing things right are few, and far between. Usually, we don’t even have the chance to make the proper plans before an implementation is already underway.
That kind of activity bothers me to the core. Add in the usual mix of lazy coworkers, overzealous know it all coworkers, and upper management that’s just out of touch, and I’m burnt out.
No, I’m more than burnt out.
I think it’s adversely affecting my health.
Or maybe it’s just genetics. I am only 3 years younger than my dad was when he had his first angina.