24-Hour Fast

A couple of months ago, I thought about a medical checkup.  I don’t know why I thought of this, but it did seem like I hadn’t had one for some time.  I called my doctor’s office to see if it was time for one.  I was more than two years overdue for a checkup.  The receptionist set up an appointment for me.  She also told me that I needed to have a 24-hour fast before the appointment.  This was required for the blood tests afterward, not for the checkup itself.  I agreed to everything.  My appointment was for 10:30 on a Tuesday morning.

On the Monday, I had my usual breakfast.  That was my last meal for that day.  I could drink water, but not eat any food until lunch time on Tuesday.  I decided right then what I was going to have for lunch on Tuesday.  I was looking forward to it already.  I went grocery shopping in the morning.  I could look at all that food, but not eat any of it.  Lunch on Monday was out.  So was supper.  Usually I did exercise, by shoveling snow or walking, along with pushups and situps, but I decided that without food I should conserve my energy.  Time passed slowly without eating and without exercise.  Finally it was bedtime.  My checkup was tomorrow, with lunch right afterwards.

I was up early on Tuesday morning, as I usually am.  No breakfast this time, though.  I usually drank tea and coffee after breakfast while reading news sites on my computer.  Not today, though.  I drank some water and read the news.  I had a slight headache, likely because of caffeine withdrawal.  Time went by very slowly.  I cleared some snow from my driveway, but just enough so I could get my car out.  I was conserving my energy, after all.  I decided to weigh myself.  I hadn’t done that for some time.  In case my doctor asks me, I thought I should check.  I was surprised to see that my weight was lower than I expected.  That’s curious.  Maybe it’s the fast.

Finally it was time.  I drove to my doctor’s office.  It was cold.  The streets were slippery and rutted.  I drove carefully.  Even then, I was a few minutes early.  I sat in the doctor’s waiting room.  Then I sat in his examining room.  What was I going to say to him?  My thoughts kept returning to lunch.  Finally my doctor appeared.  We had a discussion about my state of health.  He did the usual tests on my heart and lungs.  All he said was “hmm”.  When he took my blood pressure, I said “it’s always been normal”.  He said “that’s because you’re slim”.  I suppose it was still normal.  Then I had an EKG and another discussion with my doctor.  No surprises and no bad news anyway.  I suppose that’s good news.  Then he sent me off for my blood tests.  The checkup was finally over.  My fast was finally over too.  Lunch!

I had exactly what I had wanted for lunch: tea with three pancakes and ham at a nearby restaurant.  Every bit of it tasted delicious.  I walked out of there feeling quite satisfied.  When I got home I added a cup of coffee and a cookie.  They were delicious too.  It felt so good to be back on my normal eating regime again.  I remembered the surprise when I weighed myself.  I should even be able to eat a little more.  Not too much more, though.  I don’t want my waistline to expand any further.  I’d better check my weight more frequently.  All in all, this worked out pretty well.

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