Chapter 7 · Numbers that mean something
Tracking Vitals: What to Watch and When to Worry
A reading only helps if you know the threshold that should trigger a phone call. Ask the care team for those numbers, write them at the top of this log, and stop second-guessing at midnight.
Fill in what you know, skip what you don't
There are no wrong answers. Come back and edit this chapter anytime — especially after a doctor visit or when the routine changes.
What to do
- 1Ask each clinician: what number should make me call you?
- 2Measure at the same time of day, under the same conditions.
- 3Log the reading, not your interpretation of it.
- 4Bring the log — trends persuade doctors more than single readings.
Vitals log
Same time, same conditions, every day.