while not the exact brand, that's the style I use. Keep them everywhere: bedroom, home office, truck center console, 1st aid kit, office at work, etc. I keep two -- one for adults and one for kids -- because of where I work, and because I have used them before in emergency settings. Like when my neighbor had fallen down and we couldn't find a pulse and I had to do chest compressions. At my worst during covid, my Sp02 read 85%, but the snow was a day out and I knew if I went to the hospital I'd get stuck there and couldn't help at home so it was a calculated risk to stay home and keep everyone safe. Fortunately I recovered from it, but yeah... between that, an in-ear thermometer, and a portable blood pressure monitor, my doctor was able to consult with me over the phone and while I had covid and "check my vitals." Seriously, anyone who doesn't have at least one of those needs to get one.
Fyi, I just did some data eval with my new Apple Ultra. It is amazing. It detected and recorded my AFib, same times as the hospital’s cardiac monitors. The o2 sats are almost identical, only off by a percent occasionally. BPM is identical. The ECG traces are (from my unprofessional eye) the same. Never mind the sleep analysis, respiratory data, etc. I have a new BP machine showing up today that hooks into the apple watch/health ecosystem, as does my new scale. Just stand on it and it records into my watch/phone. All while still doing normal Apple watch stuff. I’m really really impressed with their health integration stuff so far.
this is where my hangup is. I don't want or need the "apply watch stuff." The health, training and GPS data is what I want out of my watch, aside from obvious watch stuff like telling time. If it plays music, that's a bonus, but for safety I always have my phone on me when I'm running anyway. I get texts on my phone. My experience with covid has made me really appreciate all the health tools though, and not *just* for exercise purposes. Imo it's something everyone should monitor. Thing is, the apple ultra does a lot extra that I don't have a use for, and is priced accordingly. The extra money doesn't bother me as much as the fact I'd rather have something dedicated to the specific uses I need. That being said, I see where it could be huge for a lot of people who do need more out of their watches. Wish they'd figure out solar charging on their watches though.
See, I love being able to use the Apple watch stuff; it's a cell phone, it's a payment for POS systems, it unlocks my laptops when I'm beside them, it does my email, calendar, slack. Shit I do every day, but without having to worry about dragging my phone with me.
I will say that I never really saw the benefit of it until I actually bought one and started using it. It was more of an impulse buy initially, but then once I had it, I ended up using it, and appreciating it, more and more every day.
I'm on my second Garmin Fenix HR watch. The first, their Fenix 3 was the first they offered with a HR monitor. I got it when I was still bike commuting daily and I loved it. It got to the point I that the only time i used my bike computer was on long rides where I need route following and having the bigger display was more convenient. I upgraded to the Fenix6 as an early pandemic splurge. The newer watch offers better controls of my phone and music which is great for while I'm working out or too lazy to pull out my phone. We also have Garmin's weight scale
I also picked up a wireless, battery powered blood pressure machine: https://www.qardio.com/qardioarm-blood-pressure-monitor-iphone-android/ and one of these: They both tie in directly with the health data on my watch and phone. The watch app controls them. Again, I'm super impressed with how all of this shit is working together.
i don’t have a BP machine that fancy, but I have one that works. Like $35 I think on amazon. I’m on mobile, but I can grab a link to the one I got if anyone is curious. There’s a bunch of “basic” options in the same price range. One of those things you hope to not need, but if you get really sick, it’s too late to go out and get one. Again, that and the pulse oximeter saved my ass from having to go to the hospital (probably should have still bc I was at 85% oxygen saturation, but it was a calculated risk at that point). I knew everything was functioning good, except my oxygen was low, and I had a way to continue to monitor it so if it dipped more I could call ems.
Question on covid quarantine timing; This is the latest I can find: "Recommending that if you test positive for COVID-19, you stay home for at least 5 days and isolate from others in your home. You are likely most infectious during these first 5 days. Wear a high-quality mask when you must be around others at home and in public. If after 5 days you are fever-free for 24 hours without the use of medication, and your symptoms are improving, or you never had symptoms, you may end isolation after day 5." I was in Vegas last Wed-Fri, didn't really do anything over the weekend, felt off on Monday, tested positive Tue AM, same symptoms all week, sniffles with occasional cough/sneeze. Most of the CDC guidelines I find talk about basing it off fever reduction, but I've never had a fever. So do I go off of the 5 day guideline? Or until I test negative? But I remember reading that it's possible to test positive for quite some time even if you're not contagious.
I would go off 5 day guideline. Even at my absolute worst when I had the OG version, I never ran a "fever" according to the CDC (fever is anything 100.0*F or greater). And you are correct that it is possible to test positive afterward even though you are no longer contagious.
You can test positive on PCR tests beyond when you are contagious, but if you are testing positive on a rapid antigen test (home test) then you are 100% still contagious.
Really glad you posted this. All the online stuff basically gives you the five day rule if you're symptom free. I feel back to normal but just took a test and popped positive.
Got the bivalent booster today. I’ve reacted to previous CoVID vaccines and boosters with tiredness, aches and fever/night sweats. I’m not feeling too bad so far. Slightly achy and a bit feverish. I’m hoping I timed this right so that I sleep through the worst of it tonight and can fully function tomorrow.
finally broke down and ordered a garmin forerunner 955 solar. Apple watch -- series 5 -- has been slowly dying over the last 6 months or so, but the final straw was when it recorded zero HR info during my run today, after doing so intermittently during exercise last week. Still trying to work my way back from covid two fucking years later, so that health data is kinda really important now. It'll be less relevant once I'm back to good, but for now, I need all of it. Planned obsolescence can kiss my hairy white ass.
stamina still isn't the same. In bed I only need a few minutes, but I still get super fatigued really easy -- to the point of having to take a long nap each day if I'm even mildly active -- and exercise wise I am still struggling to run more than a mile and a half at a 10 min/mile pace. My resting HR is back down to the 60's (used to be in the 40-50s) but it will skyrocket the moment I start to walk up stairs or go on even a mild jog. Highest I've clocked it is in the 195ish area, which is why having accurate health sensors on my watch is important to me. Good news is, I've had every test possible at this point, from my heart to lungs to liver as well as a complete blood workup, and I'm clear as can be. It just did something that fucked up the wiring I guess. Used to be a lot worse before I got the bivalent booster actually -- I was still having daily heart palpitations until I got the 2nd booster early october. Could be worse though. I know a lot of people still on constant oxygen from the original variant, and I've gone to a few funerals as well. It's why I have little to no sympathy for those who think it's a joke.