Easy@Home Fingertip Pulse Oximeter ~~REVIEW~~

I was only 36 years old when I had a heart attack.  Overall, I was the epitome of good health.  Slightly overweight at the time, but no health issues to speak of.  My blood pressure was consistently a perfect 120/80, No high/low cholesterol issues, no chronic illnesses, and I rarely fell sick as a result of a cough, cold, etc.

At the time I had the heart attack, my job was about an hour commute from my home.  With a work schedule beginning at 7:00 in the morning and ending anywhere between 7:00 and 9:00 in the evening and 4 kids to take care of at home, I didn't get too much sleep.  However, in my opinion, I didn't need much.  On the morning of the heart attack, I woke up to a strange, and oddly painful sensation in the upper half of my arm.  Soon after, I began experiencing terrible stomach cramps.  In fact, I didn't feel pains nearly as bad when I went into labor with any of my 4 children.  Convinced it would pass, however, I continued getting ready for work.  As I drove to work on that very cold morning in November, I realized that my arm, which was now slightly numb, was not warming up as the rest of my body adjusted to the 80 degree heat pouring out of the vents in my car.  I placed my cold hand in front of one of the vents, and while I could "feel" the heat, it wasn't really warming up my hand at all.  I felt this was strange, but kept driving.  By the time I arrived at work, I felt much better.  However, one of my co-workers suggested I just stop in at a hospital or clinic and get checked out.  If it weren't for the fact that my job was physically demanding, I probably would have ignored his advice.  However, my job site that day happened to be located just across the street from a hospital, so I decided to pop in so that I could receive confirmation (and a large bill) that I was just stressing myself out, but ok.  When the doctor walked into the room and explained I had experienced a heart attack, likely as a result of a lack of oxygen to my heart, I burst into tears (thinking the worst, of course...).  Lucky for me, it was one of those fluke things that happens to about 1% of those struck with a heart attack (a statistic that fits me well), and there was no lasting damage, nor did I have any health concerns that require long-term maintenance.  Nevertheless, it opened my eyes to the many steps I can take to prevent something worse should I ever experience this again.

One of the items I have recently had the opportunity to review free in exchange for my honest review was Easy @ Home's Fingertip Pulse Oximeter.  While having one of these may not have changed the circumstances that morning, it could a) provided important cues and clues leading up to the event, and/or b) saved my life had I decided to be stubborn and not check the situation out further (which is really classic "me"... I just happened to listen to that inner voice that morning).  

I was sincerely impressed with this pulse oximeter, which depicts high-quality design, and came with a nice carrying case with a neck/wrist cord attached.  The led display is extremely clear, accurate, and easy-to-read.  It comes with two AAA batteries and has a power-save function that will automatically shut it off if not receiving a signal within 5 seconds.

If you're not sure how a pulse oximeter may be able to benefit you, you may be interested in checking out these suggested uses of pulse oximeters as suggested by Healthcare4Home.

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