February Social Check-in! ❤️

[Luke_BHF]

As we step into February, with Valentine’s Day just around the corner, let’s take a moment to connect. ❤️ Whether you’re celebrating with a partner, friends, or simply enjoying some self-love, our community is here for you.

Feel free to share your thoughts, experiences, or anything else you’d like to discuss. Let’s create a warm and supportive space where everyone feels heard.

Exciting Event Alert! Mark your calendars for our second Live & Ticking event of the year on February 28th at 4 pm! We’re thrilled to welcome Dr. Peter Swoboda, a distinguished Consultant Cardiologist and Associate Professor in Cardiology at the University of Leeds. Dr. Swoboda will delve into his groundbreaking research on treating patients with chest pain. Could a personalised care approach lead to better health outcomes and an improved quality of life? Join us to find out!

For more information on chest pain and its treatment, visit bhf.org.uk/liventicking.

Remember, you’re part of a caring community. If you have questions, need support, or simply want to say hello, don’t hesitate to reach out.

Wishing you all a wonderful week ahead,

Luke from the BHF 😊

[Hidden]

Hello,

14th Feb and no one has posted on the Social Check-in this month (again)!!!!!

It's Valentines Day, surely the likes of today is what the Check-in is for.

Anyway Happy Valentines Day. I got my wife a Happy Carer's Day Card for 30+ years service.

Just had a nice Apple Turnover with Cream, a long day at hospital yesterday so why not!

I'll be having some chocolate later today, I'd call it a treat but, I'd be lying as I have some every day.

[Fanfab1 in reply to Hidden]

lol about the chocolate 😂

[BeKind28- in reply to Hidden]

Hello

Only just seen some have posted in the thread it seems to have gone in retirement this thread but it is good to see a post

Happy Belated Valentines day and I bet your wife loved the card I never knew you could get those kinds of cards

Glad you enjoyed your treats to x

[GosportNancy29 in reply to Hidden]

This thread has been pinned but the March Social Check in is hidden someplace?

[Mopsey1897]

Hello and happy Valentine’s Day to you and everyone else who enjoys it. I’m out for dinner with my husband later which will be nice. Had a few bad days of feeling hopeless as I’m still waiting for heart angiogram and just found out I have emphysema as well. But life goes on and there are people worse than me. Have a good day everyone 🎉

[Fanfab1 in reply to Mopsey1897]

Hope having dinner helped distract you at least for a while, and hope you get help / answers soon!

[Mopsey1897 in reply to Fanfab1]

Thank you. I’m hoping for the heart angiogram in the next few weeks 🤞Dinner was a lovely distraction

[BeKind28- in reply to Mopsey1897]

Hello

Happy belated Valentines Day to you

So sorry you are having some bad days and totally understandable waiting is always the worst bit and been diagnosed with emphysema but love how you can stay positive with the thought of live goes on

One thing you are not though is hopeless so I hope that feeling has now gone and you enjoyed your Valentines Meal x

[Valentina98]

I've only just seen this, you may remember in the January social I posted a photo of a blanket I was making for Olive well I've almost finished it.

What do you think?

Brightly coloured homemade crochet blanket

[Tos92 in reply to Valentina98]

It looks lovely!

[BeKind28- in reply to Valentina98]

Hello

I keep forgetting to look on here but you have done a great job it looks lovely and the colors look very nice together x

[Valentina98 in reply to BeKind28-]

Thanks, I'm working on a shawl for me now, I'm so proud of my blanket and I'm sure Olive will love it

I liked the mix of colours as well and I thought I did an ok job of blending them together 😁

[BeKind28- in reply to Valentina98]

Hello

It is beautiful you did a really good job and hope you will show us the shawl when you have done it x

[MadBunny in reply to Valentina98]

Your blanket looks lovely. The colours work very well together.I love crochet - I find it so relaxing.

At the moment I'm making lots of mini rabbits to use for Easter cards/ bunting .

Sorry- can't get the photo to load the right way up 🥴

Mini bunnies

[Valentina98 in reply to MadBunny]

Oh I love those! I'll have to look up the pattern

[MadBunny in reply to Valentina98]

I worked it out from photo- sort of made it up as I went along. Its made in one piece Here it is - but I'm not so good at explaining, so I hope it works 🤗🐰

There are lots of free patterns online .

So;

Body

Starting with a magic ring (or ring of 6 ch):

into the ring

Work 3 ch ( forms 1st stitch)

Work 15 tr

Sl St into top of the 3 chains to join

Head

Work 3ch( 1st stitch)

Work 4 tr into top of 1st tr of body

Ears( 2 made the same)

8ch

Sl St into top of 4th tr of head

Repeat for 2nd ear.

Sl St down side of head and across tops of next 5 stitches of body

Tail

Ch 5

Sl st into top of next treble

Fasten off.

[Bananacar in reply to MadBunny]

Love the bunnies ! I do a lot of crafts, sewing, knitting and dressmaking but I like to crochet best, during lock down I made lots of small animals for my daughter to award as 'prizes' for the key workers children in the school where she taught. Keeps the brain active and the fingers supple. I shall now use this pattern to decorate cardigans etc. Thank you.

[MadBunny in reply to Bananacar]

What a lovely idea! I bet they were very popular and greatly appreciated. I also found a picture of a chick, which I might try to adapt from the bunny pattern

Crochet chicks

[Bananacar in reply to MadBunny]

Oh how lovely, I have made a load of bunnies and put them on an Easter wreath for my daughter's front door, I shall now make some chickens _- lovely for baby cardigans!

[MadBunny in reply to Bananacar]

Could you post a photo of the wreath please? I'd love to see it x

[Fanfab1 in reply to MadBunny]

😂I Thought they were fishes but then I looked side ways (keeping the iPad straight) and then I saw the bunnys very cute.

[MadBunny in reply to Fanfab1]

Yes I see what you mean 😁

The shape's a bit hit and miss as I don't always get them quite right 🐰

[Fanfab1 in reply to MadBunny]

I think you’re doing well. I’ve just replenished my yarn stash with lots of different colours and hoping to try my hand at some little animals / toys. I can’t crochet I find it hard to keep hold the crochet needle thingy due to my carpel tunnel but I’m better with knitting. 🧶

[MadBunny in reply to Fanfab1]

I've got quite a stash , too. I've only recently got into crochet. My grandma taught me the basics when I was young , but I've always been more into knitting.

[Fanfab1 in reply to MadBunny]

My mum used to be able to knit without looking at it 😳 will get started on my next project, just doing some cross stitch for a change but my fingers go numb / pins and needle if I hold the needle too long but I still like it.

Good luck with the bunnys or what ever you try next!

I am looking for ideas of other crafts I can do when resting - I have to keep my feet up as they swell if sit for longer than twenty mins in a chair. I sound like a complete mess but crafts help me mentally too. Feels productive. Was going to do a post here on social when March starts up!

👍

[MadBunny in reply to Fanfab1]

I used to do a lot of cross stitch although I struggle at times because of my RA. I started doing a picture for a friend's 70th birthday but I've lacked the motivation recently No , you don't sound like a complete mess at all. I'm getting fatigued and short of breath so spend a lot of time resting with my feet up. I have an appointment next week to discuss the results of my echocardiogram and I'm so anxious about it. I've got little energy at the moment.

If you like sewing- have you looked into slow stitching ? I went to a workshop last year and really enjoyed it .

Also patchwork might be another possibility.

[Fanfab1 in reply to MadBunny]

Thanks for those suggestions

I’m similar and rest a lot too. Sometimes we have to try and be kind to ourselves when just don’t have the energy - think we just have to go with it.

I am sorry, I haven’t read your bio so I’m not familiar with RA, but hope results go ok and you find some solutions to help with the symptoms.

👍

[MadBunny in reply to Fanfab1]

Thanks. I haven't updated my bio yet- waiting to see what the doctor says. I only recently joined BHF. I've had RA for 17 years. I've had my ups and downs but at the moment it's well controlled. The heart issues really started last Summer when a blood test showed I might have heart failure (I hate that phrase!) and symptoms started to get worse. I read the echo report, but didn't understand the terminology but it looks like the afib needs further medication. I'll just have to wait and see.....Meanwhile, on with the bunnies 😊🐰

[BeKind28- in reply to MadBunny]

Hello

They are lovely you could even make an easter blanket maybe using those says me that cannot crochet x

[Deejay62 in reply to MadBunny]

They’re cute x

[MadBunny in reply to Deejay62]

Thank you. They are x🐰

[Deejay62 in reply to Valentina98]

That is beautiful V, a lovely pattern x

[Turnipgirl]

Had some great news today as I got offered a job which i have accepted and I asked them to put the offer in writing which is fair enough!

Back in the November of 2022 I got offered a job at a place that had antagonised me before the interview even started in how they approached me to ask me to interview as they had rung me but I wasn't available and then had left a message on the phone and at my 2 e mail addresses which I thought was ridiculous as you would have thought someone had died or there had been an emergency but asking someone to interview is in no way an emergency in my view!

Then a gas safety check at home came up and I couldn't do their appointment so I had rung them up and apologised and had said their appointment was no longer possible as something urgent had come up that couldn't be rearranged and they had asked could I go in later that day and I had said no I could not and had rearranged for the following Monday morning!

I had gone to the interview and my body had told me no the place isn't for you and at the interview they had the cheek to have asked me what was my urgent appointment for?

OK a gas safety check isn't anything private but that's not the point and that sealed the deal no way was I taking the job with them!

I had hoped that the job wouldn't be offered but no such luck and it was a Thursday afternoon and I couldn't come to the phone and they had literally blown the phone up all to offer me the job there!

With respect offering a job isn't an emergency and didn't warrant that kind of reaction!

What I did was I wrote back to them and thanked them for their offer but said no thanks I wouldn't be taking their job and I feel I made the right decision as well!

Lesson is listen when your body tells you no to things that aren't right for you and act on it!

Today my body was telling me yes to accept if I did get offered the job but if not the world wouldn't end!

I wasn't expecting that call offering me the job this lunchtime!

As usual I wasn't there when they rang but they asked me could I call them back when I was free which I did do and it was a shock hearing that the job was being offered that I had hoped to get an offer for!

[MadBunny in reply to Turnipgirl]

That's great news! I'm so pleased for you .

[Turnipgirl in reply to MadBunny]

It's always the way isn't it how they ring when you are not there to answer!

Thing is I don't have the luxury to sit by the phone waiting for it to ring all day every day!

How are you and Dylan getting on?

Baby is great and looking forward to her birthday party!

My sister in law was glad for me when I popped upstairs to see her before I went to swimming at 3pm and said congratulations and how I was now free from that stupid pharmacy that treated me badly!

[MadBunny in reply to Turnipgirl]

We're fine. Just counting down the days until I have my appointment to discuss the results of my echocardiogram.

[Turnipgirl in reply to MadBunny]

I hate that when you have to wait for results!Years ago I had blood tests and rang the surgery for the results and I was very anxious but thankfully everything was fine!

Just before I moved I got really anxious when I received a text saying that a blood test needed to be repeated and I booked the appointment to have it redone and thankfully the second time round everything was fine but it was horrible getting that text saying the test needed to be repeated as I was fearing the worst!

Thankfully the nurse reassured me how when tests need repeating it's to do with things going wrong at the lab say the sample has haemolysed on the way to the lab and they can't read it rather than problems with the patient!

[MadBunny in reply to Turnipgirl]

I've got the results but don't understand them. I had an afib episode at the time, that I do understand. And that I have atrial dilation. But I need to have it explained and medication discussed. I hate being asked to repeat tests without knowing why. Thankfully there's never been anything wrong .

[Turnipgirl in reply to MadBunny]

If the surgery had explained that they were sorry but there had been a mishap at the lab and the test needed repeating I wouldn't have felt frightened as there was no call for that if things had been explained to me!

[MadBunny in reply to Turnipgirl]

I agree. They never say anything do they?

[Turnipgirl in reply to MadBunny]

It's so frustrating isn't it when you can't get an answer to a simple question!

[BeKind28- in reply to Turnipgirl]

Hello

This is good news I am so pleased for you x

[Turnipgirl in reply to BeKind28-]

Yes it's great news isn't it after all that grief I went through and being disappointed!

With jobs I am well aware more are disappointed than not and would tell myself after disappointments how I wasn't the only one disappointed!

My body had told me yes to take the job but still I hadn't expected to get told we would like to offer you the job and I asked her to put the offer in writing which is fair enough and a little bit of me was telling me think about this and ask for time to think it over but I said yes anyway and go from there!

With that other offer that I turned down my body had screamed no throughout the process to taking it and thankfully I had listened and had turned it down as I couldn't stand their attitudes!

OK the gas safety certificate appointment thing wasn't anything that I consider to be anything private but the point is they had no business in asking me what that appointment was for in the first place!

[BeKind28- in reply to Turnipgirl]

x

[Richdirich]

hi Luke I’ve just registered on the site and missed todays live talk. Is it available anywhere? Thank you