crazy?â âUnusual but not crazy,â I said. âWas this with the headaches or at some other time?â âWith. As I said, the headaches were worse last night. I took the pills you gave me and they helped some, but the headaches always came back. Then this morning I felt better. Tired but pain free.â âAnd then?â I anticipated there was more to the story. âA couple of hours ago the pain came back. I tried to ride it out, but when my tongue, neck, and right ear started burning, I got worried.â âOnly on the right side?â Divya asked. She nodded. âWhat were you doing when it started?â I asked. âI was talking on the phone with a friend.â âStressful?â âNot at all. We were talking about a dinner party weâre going to this weekend.â âLet me check things again,â I said. I twisted to face her and again did a brief neurological exam and again felt along the right side of her face and jaw. Nothing. Her neuro exam was still normal and I found no tender areas. âAnd I almost fainted,â Felicia said. âWhen?â âJust after I called you. I was eating some peanut butter and crackers. I thought maybe my blood sugar was low or something.â âDid it help? The crackers?â She shook her head. âThen I felt light-headed. I left the kitchen and headed in here to lie down, but I almost didnât make it. My legs felt rubbery and things looked dim.â âDid you fall?â Divya asked âNo. I made it to the sofa. Once I lay down for a couple of minutes I felt fine.â âIs this the only time thatâs happened?â She gave me a sheepish look. âA couple of other times. Last week.â âYou didnât tell me that yesterday.â âI know. Iâm sorry.â âYou have to tell me everything. Okay?â She nodded. âI promise.â Withholding things from your doctor is not as unusual as most people think. Might not sound logical, but itâs not uncommon. Some are afraid the doctor will find something terrible if they reveal all their symptoms. Some simply want to cut things short. Get out of the doctorâs office and home as soon as possible. Where itâs safe. Where bad things canât be uncovered. Some are simply embarrassed by certain symptoms. âHave you had any chest pain or shortness of breath?â Divya asked. âNo.â She looked at me. âWhat is all this?â âThe labs we drew yesterday are normal. We had them e-mailed to us as we drove over. The best bet is still a migraine syndrome, but there are a couple of other things we have to consider.â âLike?â âUnusual coronary symptoms.â âBy âcoronaryâ do you mean heart attack or angina or something like that?â âYes. Coronary problems donât always cause chest pain. Sometimes itâs just shortness of breath, or dizziness, or neck pain.â She sighed. âThatâs what took my Charles.â She nodded toward the photos on the mantel. âTwo years ago.â âItâs unlikely that thatâs whatâs going on,â I said. âBut we can quickly rule it out.â âHow?â âA stress test.â âSo I have to go to the hospital?â âNo. We can do it right here. We have our stress echo equipment outside in the van.â âIâm impressed. Of course, Ellie said I would be.â âWe pay her to say nice things.â I smiled. âWe can set it up right here in the living room if thatâs okay.â âSure.â âWhile we get things ready why donât you change into something more comfortable and put on your walking shoes if you have any.â âI walk almost every day, so I have plenty of that stuff.â Twenty minutes later Felicia had changed clothes and Divya had finished the resting