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Blood pressure med caused terrible leg cramps

DEAR DR. ROACH: I have high blood pressure, and I hope that you can advise me. For 10 years, I have suffered with terrible leg cramps in one or both calves. I visited numerous doctors in order to learn what the cause was. Not one practitioner questioned the blood pressure medicine that I had ...

Unbalanced dinner bill

Dear Annie: My wife and I have been friends with this couple for over 10 years. We met when our kids were in grade school. We would get together with this couple regularly over the years for dinner and drinks, while the kids would stay at home. When we go out, we would always split the bill ...

Enlarged prostate and overactive bladder play alternating roles

DEAR DR. ROACH: I am 77 years old and have a quite enlarged prostate, according to my doctor. Often, an hour or so after I drink a cup of coffee, I’ll feel like I have to urinate. If I’m in the middle of doing something trivial and try to put it off, it will become more and more urgent to ...

Let your children fly

Dear Annie: I cried when I was reading the letters from parents about not letting go of their children in college. My mother was so strict with me that I was not even allowed to go to college. A new local college was opened the year I graduated from high school, but my parents’ excuse for ...

To aspirate or not to aspirate before a shot? Both are OK

DEAR DR. ROACH: Would it be reasonable for me to ask the tech to aspirate the plunger when I go for a vaccine? I understand that the veins in the shoulder are rarely accessible to an IM needle, but still, I would not mind the extra 5 to 10 seconds of discomfort while the tech looks to see if ...

Is it OK to contact former girlfriends? Ask partner first

Dear Annie: When I was a 21-year-old assistant English instructor (an “intern”) at a summer program for high school seniors in New Hampshire, I developed an interest in one of the students. She was 18. The relationship was completely chaste. I’m not kidding. I never touched her, and she ...