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At my local gov; hospital you have to walk up a steep slope to the hospital entrance , then you are told immediately by a nurse to sit and take a b/p test in the b/p machine . Mine is always 150 ish , wait 5 minutes and its down to around 130 . At home its always around 120 / 60 or there about . Having a few beers the night before can an effect of increasing your b/p . I once took amlodipine and it made my legs and ankles swell up ( Edema ) . Doctor stopped amlodipine and put me on losartan . Your b/p is always higher in the morning and peaks at mid-day then drops late afternoon and evening .

Hi Dario , You and me have similar health problems , remember the nerve condition and benfotamine ? Well I also have had re-flux for as long as I can remember and used to eat Rennies ( antacid tablets ) as if they were sweets , to quell the acid . I am also taking omeprazole which works well as a preventitive not a cure . Long term use of omeprazole is not recommended in the UK . The NHS state up to 3 months . I have been on it for over 20 years . The omeprazole reduces the strength of the stomach acid and re flux . However the stomach needs the acid to digest food t and extract and pass vitamins to other organs . Aspirin is frowned on in Thailand as it can cause stomach bleeding . Do you know that soluable aspirin is banned in Thailand . Yet it could be a life saver in the event of a heart attack or thrombosis . Warfarin is the preferred medication as a blood thinner in Thailand along with a few other anticoagulants . Never mind the reflux , you must speak to a doctor quickly regarding the withdrawal of the baby aspirin and a possible blood thinner replacement for your cardiac condition . Strangely enough I purposely did not take an omeprazole this morning . I was ok for about 4 hours , when after lunch the indigestion started . I do have some liquid gaviscon which stops the re flux for an hour or 2 . Coffee and smoking are two of the main causes of re flux along with spicy food and acidic fruits . Long term use of omeprazole can have effects , link below . I am not a medic but I am quoting my experiences and advice given to me by UK doctors . https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/drugs-dexilant-side-effects?utm_source=ReadNext#talk-with-your-doctor

Many years ago I had Scouse work mate , was 6 feet 6 inches tall , big build and a ruffy tuffy guy , name big Jim . He picked up a job in Liverpool docks to provide a partial repair/ refit on an unloaded oil tanker which was going to Brazil , without docking on the way . Supplied by offshore means . It t took about 1 month . At arrival in Brazil the ships crew were all out for a good night . After many beers Jim picked up a lady of the night and took her to his hotel . When it got down to the bedroom business Jim discovered that what he had picked up was a fella . Jim told me this . He said to me , keep it a secret but I was so horny , having been at sea for a month , that I shafted him . I was in hysterics when Jim said he had to call an ambulance in the morning because the Brazilian guy could not walk .

I often have to use a wheelchair in airports because I have a spinal problem . With Thai Air , apparently they say when making your booking , there is an option to request a wheelchair , though on a test booking I could not find that . They also have a web page titled " Special Assistance " but that only refers back to the requesting wheelchairs when making your booking . At most international airports there are wheelchair providers that are not attached to any airline but are part of the airport service . I have never requested a wheelchair when making a booking , only ask when at the airport but that seems to be on a first come first served basis and one time there were none available at Suvarnabhumi airport . There were able bodied Asian fat women sat waiting for a wheelchair and I would have to get in the queue . The system is badly run . The same at Heathrow where the electric mobility buggy is occupied by lazy , overweight Indian women at the expense of disabled passengers who have to wait by the aircraft for transport . In my experience the wheelchair service is abused and wheelchairs are often provided to people who are not handicapped but are often overweight Asian women , or lazy fat ( under the influence of alcohol ) men . IMO wheelchairs should only be provided to people with a doctors note / medical cert . Tip , get to the airport early if needing the use of a wheelchair , especially if making a long haul flight with many passengers .

but still crap compared to the UK / Euro lottery . What happens to the Thai lottery revenue ? cos it is not paid out in prizes .

If only the subject of " UK Frozen Pensions " could be debated on live UK TV , to hear the government reasoning for their denial of annual increases for ex pats retired abroad and who qualified for the state pension after many years of contributions that would be interesting to say the least . Say on the BBC Question Time programme , asking a Labour panelist , if they will honour the J. Corbyn oath to unfreeze the ex pats pensions . Remember the UK government threat that all ex pats living in Europe would have their increases stopped but then decided to change their minds and set up a social security agreement with the EEA + many other countries . Another group of countries are on a similar deal called reciprocal agreements . List of Social Security Agreement countries Austria Belgium Bulgaria Croatia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Ireland Italy Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Romania Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden List of reciprocal agreement countries Barbados Bermuda Bosnia-Herzegovina Gibraltar Guernsey the Isle of Man Israel Jamaica Jersey Kosovo Mauritius Montenegro North Macedonia the Philippines Serbia Turkey USA

The procedures that I have had for skin cancer are . 1/ Cryogenics , i.e. the freezing of the scab using liquid nitrogen , 2/ Under the scalpel , 3 / Using a cream name Efudix , 5% Fluorouracil which if used in the early stages of a growth , is effective .It has to be used sparingly and placed directly to the growth and avoid touching your unaffected good skin because the cream has a corrosive effect and can cause your skin to become reddened . I have been using it for the last 3 days to remove a small growth under my lower eye lid , now gone . In the UK , my local dermatology doctors were sometimes undecided to state which skin cancer I had because bascal cell carcinoma often resembles melanoma or Squamous cell carcinoma .To be on the safe side they operate , normally the same day of your consultation , and a biopsy is taken . So far my 3 operations have produced negative biopsy / melanoma results . As we know the sun is very strong in Thailand and for that reason I try to stay out of it or wear a wide brimmed hat or carry an umbrella .

Excellent reply

So what happened to the vote on the annulment of the S.S. B. up-rating Regulations ? J.C. did , as you said , make a Labour promise to level up the UK State pensions for those living abroad . No mention of paying back the years of lost money from frozen pensions . So some 7 years on , would the current Labour party , under K. Starmer , honour the J.C. pledge ? Thanks for your detailed information .

Not forgetting the HS2 scandal .

Now I am not certain on this but the J.C. statement on frozen UK pensions was made from the opinion of the All party Parliamentary Group on Frozen British Pensions . The All Party Group consists of many different parties who all believe in the injustice of the frozen pensions for those Brits living abroad . I have read that the Vice chairman Sir Peter Bottmley raised the issue of frozen pensions to the COE , Jeremy Hunt November 2023 . Mr Hunt promised to look into the case and reply personally on the matter . I do not recall hearing a verdict or comment from Jeremy Hunt , do you ? I cannot understand why there has not been a reform on frozen pensions , given the wide cross parliamentary party support .

Corbyn was ostracised from the labour party . Now that could be a reason for not adopting the pledge .

That was a J. Corbyn statement from 2017 . Do you think they will honour that now ? They would certainly get a lot of election votes .

Mass immigration does not work generally for the country but as you say the big bosses of businesses like it because new immigrants often work for less than the going rate and undermine the British workers . The migrants are happy with their wage which is much higher than their home country pays . They will send money to their relatives in their homeland , instead of it going into the UK economy . New immigrants often stay cheaply in the UK by living in grossly overcrowded accommodation . Legal immigrants who are allowed UK visas because being related to a settled immigrant , are often unemployed and claiming benefits .

Digressing slightly . Yesterday the labour leader Keir Starmer said that if the labour party are elected this year , they will retain the triple lock system on the UK state pension . That is a commitment which has not been promised by Jeremy Hunt , C.O.E.

Here is hoping your improvement continues . Only last night I was talking to a middle aged Brit who worked most of his life on UK building sites in his shorts only , now sunbathes in the afternoon sun here in Thailand and proud of his tan . I had to explain to him that the damaging effects of exposure to the sun do not always become apparent until later life . The skin ages because the sub layer of collagen all but disappears . I had black hair when young and a good tolerance of not getting sun burnt , unlike fair skinned / ginger haired people . However , all that sun exposure has caught up with me with skin cancer . Skin cancer is not that common in the Asian people and trying to find a skin specialist away from the big cities is not easy .

I have just read your posts and I have posted the same sentiments before reading yours . The UK and most of Europe are in a right mess because of non European immigration . The biggest problem when putting forward opinions on anti immigration is the do -gooders often accuse us of being racist . Yet that is the very case with many immigrants unwilling to integrate but instead form their own communities . Inter racial violence is not uncommon and is sometimes started by immigrants who think they can do as they please , disregarding the laws . I have time for genuine asylum seekers such as most from the Ukraine but spongers and criminals , deport them .

Similar immigrant crimes throughout the Western word . In the UK shop lifting ( committed by immigrants ) is got to such a high level that the police do not bother to attend the crime . Shop assistants are often abused . In the UK Midlands there are gangs of immigrants , who groom young vulnerable girls , for their illegal sexual pleasures . These criminals should be deported . Low skilled genuine asylum seekers should be unable to claim government benefits for a set period but employed to do basic local council manual work or work on farms e.g. fruit / vegetable pickers , to earn their keep , on a probationary period . Non performers / trouble makers to be deported . Free loaders go out of their way to get to the UK because its a soft touch with too many do- gooders. Why does the UK still belong to the European Court of Human Rights ( ECHR ) ? Despite Brexit the UK is still under the EC rule . Time to ignore it . Those illegals , who cross the English Channel in rubber dinghies should be taken on board UK navy boats and returned to France along with their , beyond repair , dissected dinghy . In certain UK cities there are " no go zones " that are rife in crime . Last night there was an interview on GB news with Matt Goodwin who is a professor of politics at Kent university . He condemns mass immigration because of the effects and implications that it has on a countries economy and culture . He is to chair a seminar on immigration in the near future that is open to the public by way of tickets . You can Google Matt Goodwin and watch a brief interview . He tells it as it is and no punches held back .

Mass immigration , both legal and illegal throughout Europe has caused many problems for countries economies , housing , health care and education etc . 1.2 million legal and 50,000 illegal immigrants arrived in the UK in 2023 . Legals are often approved because of family connections and student claims . Most bring , at best , a low skill level . The UK lost over 500,000 emigrant citizens to other countries who mostly use a points system to qualify for legal immigration . This equates as a UK brain drain . Now I hear that the UK is to allow foreign dentists to come to the UK without having to take UK dentistry exams . The mass immigration does not work and most Europeans that I talk to all agree that their countries living standards have the same problems as the UK and have reached an all time low , along with their loss of culture and an increased crime rate because of mass immigration .

Every day there are 45000 flights in the USA , including international & domestic flights . So quite a few air marshals if your 1% is correct . USA has 3000 air marshals

Showed me holstered gun inside his jacket and high on his chest . Also he was in regular contact with the flight crew .

Many people do have alcohol before a flight because it calms their nerves . Hence the many bars at airports . But I have never seen any incidents where fighting has occurred . Any passenger who appears to be the worse for drink should be deemed to be unfit to fly .

As well as many American airlines have Air Marshals

Not sure because they dress in civilian clothes . However I did sit next to an air marshal on an Egypt flight . He made several walks around the aircraft . We had a conversation and he then explained why he was on the move a lot . Big guy and armed .

I always thought that airlines employed armed onboard air marshals to deal with such disturbances