Having My Physical Next Week....

Whenever I go to the Doctor I always ask for full bloodwork, including Chemistries to check kidneys, liver; blood sugar; complete blood count for infection and anemia, thyroid levels and cholestrol and triglycerides. I also ask for a urinalysis as well. Call your doctor's office and have them tell you what their typical "annual" bloodwork consists of because some insurance will not accept some bloodwork if you aren't sick. Also ask if they have any pre-bloodwork rules. I know for cholestrol and triglycerides they usually require a 12 hour fast.

If you tell him you want "the works" he'll know what to do. Trust your doctor to know. He'll talk with you about about the exam and what he'll do as well as what tests are not needed and why.

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Just a suggestion... do you have life insurance yet? If not, you should! They will do a thorough blood test battery that is far more comprehensive than your doctor would prescribe and there is no cost (aside from the insurance premium)!

We got our life insurance in March and they sent the results to us directly and we brought them with us to our annual physicals per the doctor's suggestion.

Aside from that, there is a "standard" blood battery that doctors prescribe that looks primarily at your internal organ functioning (liver, kidneys, etc), cholesterol, blood sugars, etc.

My doctor recommended a colonoscopy for me at 35 because I have a family history. If you have a family history at all, I'd recommend it earlier than 50. I had a tubular adenoma which is a benign polyp that may turn cancerous if not removed. Of course, I had it removed. You may also want to go for a mamogram eventhough you are not yet 40. That way they have a picture of a healthy breast for you and can more easily determine if something is changing. Full blood work - cholesterol (LDL, HDL and triglycerides) and what the other moms said.

You are very wise to make sure you get all the tests you need. You cannot blindly trust the doctor to do them. In addition to the other tests suggested, ask for your vitamin D levels to be tested.

Definately thyroid, vitamin D, and iron.

Cholesterol( full lipid test), if you have any family history's of anything I would consider getting that tested as well. I had my thyroid checked after having my son.