Having high cholesterol actually helped to motivate me

I first really started looking into it all when I applied to train for the police force. I had to pass a medical for that. And I knew that high cholesterol levels might be a problem, like in the army.

So I was very strict about my fitness and diet. I ate very healthily and did lots of exercise to prepare for the physical test. I hoped that I’d be able to lower my cholesterol that way. But it didn’t work. It may still have helped a bit because my levels might have been even higher otherwise. Luckily, I passed the physical and aptitude test and joined the police force.

I was still concerned about my high cholesterol levels, though. It played on my mind. And I knew that I'd have to pass more medicals over the years to come, at the end of my training and before being recruited for life. I also wanted to stay fit and healthy for the standard training.

So when I moved house, I looked for a new family doctor to get a second opinion. And what do you know: My new family doctor said right away that she would recommend medication for my high cholesterol.

I trusted her. So I started taking a statin three years go. She was very understanding and explained to me in detail why she thought it was a good idea to take medication to lower my cholesterol.

But I didn’t tolerate the medication, unfortunately. I stopped taking it to see what would happen, and I immediately felt better. I told my doctor about that, too.

Then I stopped the treatment and forgot about it for the next few years.

But everyone in our family got a real shock when doctors told my father (during a routine check before surgery) that he was very close to having a heart attack. His coronary arteries had hardened a lot, and he was really lucky that it was spotted and treated.

From then on, everything got a bit more serious and real for us four siblings. We were all around the age of 30 and until then had seen it more as a challenge and joked about it: “So, whose cholesterol is higher? You’ve not overtaken me, have you?” In hindsight it seems pretty cynical, but it really hadn’t registered with us.

It was so abstract. A blood level wasn’t what it was supposed to be, but it felt more like a vitamin deficiency. We hadn’t realized that it could be life-threatening.

Because it was the hereditary family type, all members of our family had to have a cardiologist check-up. It was important to see if we kids had any changes in our blood vessels.

Apparently, there was a pretty high risk that our arteries would already start to harden at a young age. None of us has any damage to our blood vessels to this day, which is very comforting.

Even though my vessels were all clear, my family doctor was very insistent that I should take medication. I tolerated the second statin medication very well, thank Goodness. The dose was gradually increased until my cholesterol was under 100. That was confirmed recently at my last check-up.

And I was also told that it’s okay if I forget a tablet now and then. I had misunderstood something my old family doctor said, and thought that I had to be really strict about taking them – like with the birth control pill. I found that unsettling at the time and it was also one reason why I didn’t look into medication any further because it seemed too stressful.

I have a blood test for cholesterol once a year and see my cardiologist every five years to have my blood vessels checked. My family doctor and my cardiologist both explained how serious the situation is, without dramatizing it.

That combination is important: Neutral information, no sugar-coating, but no fear-mongering either. It helps me to stick to it but not worry for no reason. I would advise other people my age to see several doctors. Because even if you trust your doctors and they know your family well, their knowledge of a certain treatment might not be up-to-date anymore.

It’s also important to do your own research. But you should always be careful to only use reliable sources. I find it important to have one or more channels on social media that I can trust and go to when I have specific questions about my health.

My family doctor also told me that we’d have to talk about my cholesterol medication again if I was planning on having children. Apparently pregnant women generally shouldn’t take that type of medication. But sometimes it’s still a good idea to take it when pregnant. That’s not an issue for me right now, though, so I haven’t looked into it.

The fact that all four of us siblings are affected also has its advantages. We all take cholesterol-lowering medications and can talk to each other about them: “What type of statin do you take? Is it working well for you? What dose are you on?”

My eldest brother has the highest cholesterol levels. White deposits have already been found in his eye, too, which is a typical accompanying condition. He tried a few different medications until he found one that lowered his cholesterol effectively.

In hindsight, I’m glad that nothing serious has happened yet. In the worst case, I could have had a heart attack at the age of 30.

High cholesterol isn’t a disease; it’s a risk factor. And it doesn’t frighten me - it drives me. It motivated me to start looking after myself from a young age. I see it as something positive. But of course that’s a question of mindset.

I have a healthy diet, do lots of exercise, don't smoke or drink alcohol... that might have spared me early complications despite high fat levels in my blood. And even if you don’t fully manage to put all of the recommendations into practice, the medications help to reduce blood fats and the risk of diseases.

Information about a healthy diet and nutritional supplements for high cholesterol is really very contradictory and confusing. So I consulted a dietitian – a friend’s mother – and since then more or less stick to what the German Nutrition Society recommends. I consider that to be a reliable source and I know what I’m dealing with.

I put more focus on a balanced diet than on using different products to level things out again. I really try to cook fresh foods, with lots of fruit and vegetables and not many highly processed ingredients. I can’t always stick to that religiously. It’s more of a general rule of thumb that I find helpful.

Of course you need to think about the effects of starting to take medication at a young age. Taking medication for such a long time also means there could be side effects, but I think the benefits outweigh them: I’d rather take the medication for a long time than have to go through life with high cholesterol and an increased risk of an early heart attack. I'm doing well this way, have no side effects, and can hopefully prevent serious health problems with little effort: just one tablet a day.