Sunday 1st December 2019 is World Aids Day. A day to remember those lost and to raise awareness of the huge progress that has been made in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of HIV infection!

HIV treated with medication is not life-threatening. People living with HIV which is controlled on medication will have normal life expectancy. If virus levels are undetectable they also can’t pass it on.

HIV tests are great, as the sooner HIV is detected and treated the better. Why not consider getting tested yourself this year?

 

 

Did you know that there is a connection between untreated STI and infertility and complications during pregnancy and childbirth? If you are planning a family or are pregnant and think you may be at risk of a STI, it’s a good idea to get yourself tested.

Chlamydia is one of the most common sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in the UK.

It’s passed on through unprotected sex (sex without a condom) and is particularly common. If you live in the UK,  it’s recommended that you get tested for chlamydia if you’ve had unprotected sex.

Symptoms of chlamydia

Most people with chlamydia don’t notice any symptoms and don’t know they have it.

If you do develop symptoms, you may experience:

• pain when peeing
• unusual discharge from the vagina, penis or rectum (back passage)
• in women, pain in the tummy, bleeding after sex and bleeding between periods
• in men, pain and swelling in the testicles

If you think you’re at risk of having an STI or have any symptoms of chlamydia, visit a clinic and get tested properly. We can provide you with Specialist advice, private testing, rapid results and treatments.

Are you considering pregnancy or IVF? Did you know that Sexually transmitted infections can adversely affect you and your baby? There are eight STIs that can affect neonates. Not all of these are tested for in antenatal NHS care. We can provide discrete testing with rapid results and hope this promoted your health and your baby’s health.

Did you know Syphilis can affect your whole body and result in blindness? However, often syphilis has few symptoms and you can be infected without knowing. The infection also passes to an unborn baby. Syphilis tests are simple to do and not costly. Read more at www.theprivatesticlinic.co.uk

Are you suffering with anxiety or depression? These are some of the most common health problems today. It can be very debilitating and make life difficult. Don’t struggle alone-you can seek help. We offer Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and counselling to help you. Our specialists are experienced, approachable and have excellent results with their patients. Our premises are discretely sited, confidentiality is guaranteed and we aim to make your clinic experience as worry free as possible. We are registered with Health Inspectorate Wales.

Do you find it difficult to get to your doctor? Are you interested in staying fit and healthy? Perhaps you have considered a general health check. We can offer Well Woman and Well Man health checks. These include a consultation with a doctor, general blood tests, or specialist tests for cervical cancer, prostate cancer, urinary problems, cholesterol levels and diabetes. Prices start at £75. Enquire for more information on 07531 194 797. Stay healthy, stay fit, stay happy.

Many people have very stressful lives for a variety of reasons. Stress can lead to anxiety. Anxiety is a feeling of unease, worry or fear and too much anxiety can make you tired and unable to function. Anxiety can have psychological and physical symptoms such as:

Difficulty sleeping; Being irritable; feeling worried; not being able to relax; feeling tearful; palpitations, headaches, sweating, breathing faster, panic attacks, loss of appetite, butterflies in your tummy and much more. You should see a doctor if you have any of these symptoms too.

Sometimes, if they diagnose anxiety, medications can help. Some people also try other methods to help their anxiety. This may include relaxation techniques, exercise, counselling. clinical hypnotherapy or psychological treatment. A doctor will help you decide what’s best for you.

Our private practice offers counselling and clinical hypnotherapy, to help you with anxiety. Many people find these therapies very helpful in addition to their doctors treatment. Our experienced counsellors and clinical hypnotherapist are available for appointments in a discrete, calm environment at a time to suit you, for a modest fee. Our counsellors are Julia Gregory and Chris Browning, and our hypnotherapist is Lynne Pryce-Jones (see their pages on our website).

For adults betwenn 19-64 years, to stay healthy it is recommended we do two types of exercies, aerobic exercises and strength exercises. Experts say about 20 mins of aerobic activity (that raises your heart rate a little) such as walking or cycling and exercise that strengthen all your muscles.

Thats easy to say, but difficult to do if you have a busy life like us! It can also be difficult for people with limited mobility, as some of us have. Some of the things we try and do to help us get more exercise are:

Walking to work, school,or the local shops instead of driving, or parking further away from work or school and walk or use a mobility aid for the last little bit.

Parking at the far side of a supermarket car park to get more exercise in.

Doing hand weights with small weights or objects at home.

Minimise sitting if possible.

Use the stairs in work than the lift.

Arrange to exercise with a friend, so it’s harder to chicken out!

Go for a walk or exercise with a mobility aid around your workplace building in your lunch break- even if its for only 10 minutes.

Try to do sit-ups or core strengthening exercise and build them into your daily routine eg. after brushing your teeth.

Try going for a walk, cycle or do an outdoor activity on the weekend, rather than going shopping or watching TV.

Little things daily are more realistic than playing team sports every day! We’d certainly love to have the time to do this, but have other time committments in our life, so that perhaps we can only fit sports in once or twice a week.

Good luck trying to build exercise into your life! We’ll be trying to do the same! We hope that it keeps us active and well for as long as possible.

Are you finding it difficult to get to your GP, or do you have a problem that has gone on and on and not improved?

We can help at a time to suit you and for a reasonable fee of £40. Maybe you are due a smear and haven’t managed to book it in. We have female doctors that can do this for you and tests results return in just a few days. Perhaps you have had ongoing discomfort, period problems, soreness or discharge? We can help with this and provide treatment in our discrete clinic. Daytime. evening and weekend appointments available. All appointments must be made in advance, as we are not a drop in clinic. We aim to offer you  discrete, gold standard private healthcare at a price that won’t break the bank. We look forward to helping you.

Call 0845 868 4480 or 07531 194 797 or Email: enquiry@healthfirstconsulting.co.uk