I was taking a nap yesterday--what I do now instead of trying to boost my energy level with caffeine-- when my Apple watch alerted me to a text about 45 minutes into the hour timer I had set.
I didn't mind the interruption since I got the adequate rest I needed. It was from my cousin.
Why "Happy(?)"?
While my 79-year-old father was living in retirement with his sister in Florida, he was involved in a car crash that was later determined to be the result of a heart attack. His autopsy revealed massive cardiomegaly, meaning an enlarged heart. This is most probably due to his long-standing hypertension and congestive heart disease.
I was in my last year of medical school and flew down to St. Augustine for the funeral only to find out that my older brother Jim had suffered a heart attack. Before that he was a smoker, which probably contributed to the event in addition to the stress of my Father's death. It was a horrible experience for everyone involved and added to the already stressful demise of a parent.
My maternal Grandmother had a series of strokes, but she had lived into her nineties.
The family history is the easiest way to genetic profile of what diseases for which you may be susceptible. Whenever you have a new encounter with the medical system, it's important that the clinician ask you about your family medical history. It's also important to share this information with your other family members as it should be a part of understanding the family's genealogy.
I've heard that sometimes this information in placed in the "family Bible" that is passed down to the succeeding generations. As you can tell, this practice is not something new, and is more relevant today as more is known about preventing and diagnosing inherited conditions.
