Your Annual Health Check-up Checklist (What to Review Each Year)

Most people book an Annual Health Check-Up only when something feels off. I get it; life is busy, and if you feel fine, it’s easy to assume you are fine. The problem is that many common health issues stay quiet for years, like high blood pressure, prediabetes, high cholesterol, and sleep apnea. You don’t feel them until they’ve had time to cause damage.

I like to think of your yearly visit as a smoke alarm test, not a fire drill. It’s about catching small problems early and keeping your health plan realistic.

Your needs will vary by age, sex, family history, medications, and past results. This checklist helps you show up prepared, ask better questions, and leave with clear next steps.

Pre-Annual Health Check-Up

A little prep turns a quick visit into a useful one. You’ll spend less time trying to remember details and more time making decisions that fit your life.

What To Bring (A Personalized Health Snapshot)

If you can, gather these in your phone notes or on paper. This helps your clinician see the whole picture of your current health:

Medical Details

• Medications and supplements: name, dose, and how often (include vitamins, sleep aids, and weight-loss meds, as relevant to you)
• Allergies and reactions: for example, “amoxicillin caused hives.”
• Past surgeries and major diagnoses: even if they were years ago

Family history 

• Parents, siblings, children when possible: heart disease, stroke, diabetes, high cholesterol, colon cancer, breast or ovarian cancer, prostate cancer.

Lifestyle basics

• Be honest and non-judgemental about your habits. Document sleep hours, exercise type and frequency, alcohol, tobacco, vaping, and any drug use you want your doctor to know about 

Home Monitoring Data

Home numbers are often more helpful than one reading in the office. Bring what you have:

• Blood pressure readings from the last 1 to 2 weeks (morning and evening if you monitor at home)
• Weight trend, even a few points over the past year
• Blood sugar logs if you check at home (common with prediabetes or diabetes)

If you’ve had symptoms, don’t bring a vague story. Bring a simple timeline. A good format is when it started, how often it happens, what it feels like, what makes it better or worse, and what you’ve tried. That one-minute summary can save ten minutes of back-and-forth.

What To Ask (Focus on Prevention)

Go in with two goals, not ten. Here are question prompts that keep the visit focused on prevention:

• What are my biggest health risks this year?
• Do I need labs today, or can we wait?
• Are my vaccines up to date, and which are recommended for my age and lifestyle?
• What screening tests do I need now, and what can wait?
• What one or two changes would help me most (food, movement, stress, sleep)?
• If something is borderline, what’s the plan, and when do we recheck it?

Quick Tip: Don’t Hide Common Issues

Bring up topics people often hide: mood, anxiety, panic, low libido, erections, pain with sex, bladder leaks, safety at home, and alcohol or cannabis use. These issues are common, and they affect your whole health. Your doctor can only help with what they know.

Your Annual Visit Checklist

Some items happen during the appointment. Others get ordered, then you complete them later at a lab, imaging center, or specialist. Timing can change based on your personal risk and past results, so use this as a guide, not a rigid rulebook.

What To Expect (Focus on Function and Wellness)

For most adults 30 and up, expect:

The Basics

• Vitals and measurements: blood pressure, heart rate, weight, and BMI (some offices also measure waist size). If your blood pressure runs high in the office, ask about home checks, or a repeat reading after you’ve sat quietly.

Systems Check 

• Heart and lung check: listening for abnormal sounds, wheezing, or fluid signs.
• Abdomen exam: checking for tenderness, swelling, or organ enlargement.
• Skin check prompts: you may not get a full-body exam every year, but you should mention new or changing moles, bleeding spots, or sores that don’t heal.
• Muscles and joints: often brief, but if you have pain or stiffness, ask for a focused exam.

Dermatology

• You may not get a full-body exam every year, but you should mention new or changing moles, bleeding spots, or sores that don’t heal.

Whole-Person Wellness Screening

Many clinics also screen for depression, anxiety, sleep problems, alcohol use, and tobacco or vaping. These are health issues, not character flaws. Also, remember, dental and eye care are part of prevention, even if your primary care office doesn’t do them. Gum disease, vision changes, and glaucoma risk don’t belong on the back burner.

Common Labs and Risk Checks (Based on Your Personal Factors)

Not everyone needs every test every year, but these are common discussions at an Annual Health Check-Up:

Metabolic/Cardiovascular

• Cholesterol (lipid panel): helps estimate heart and stroke risk
• Blood sugar (A1C or fasting glucose): screens for prediabetes and diabetes
• Kidney function: important if you have pre-existing conditions like high blood pressure, diabetes, or if you take certain meds
• Liver enzymes: often checked with metabolic screening, alcohol use, or certain meds

Organ Function & Blood Health 

• Blood count (CBC): more likely if you report symptoms like fatigue, heavy periods, bleeding, or other symptoms
• Thyroid test: usually based on symptoms (fatigue, weight change, heat or cold intolerance, hair loss)

Targeted Screening 

• Thyroid test: usually based on symptoms (fatigue, weight change, heat or cold intolerance, hair loss).
• STI testing: based on risk, new partners, or symptoms (no shame, just good care)

Quick Tip: If blood pressure is high, ask for a clear follow-up plan, like home readings for 2 weeks, then a message or recheck visit.

Screenings To Discuss (Timing is Personalized)

Screenings catch disease early, before symptoms show up. The right timing depends on family history, personal history, and past results. Discuss these options with your clinician to create a personalized schedule:

Cancer Screenings

• Colon cancer screening: often starts at age 45 for average risk, earlier with a strong family history or certain conditions
• Cervical cancer screening: PAP and HPV testing on a schedule your clinician recommends (it isn’t always yearly)
• Breast cancer screening: planning often starts in the 40s for average risk, earlier for higher risk (family history, certain genetic risks, prior chest radiation)
• Prostate cancer: a shared decision in midlife, based on risk factors and personal preference
• Skin cancer checks: especially with lots of sun exposure, tanning bed history, fair skin, or family history

Other Preventative Checks

• Bone health and fall risk: earlier if you have risk factors (long-term steroid use, low body weight, fractures, or conditions that weaken bone)
• Diabetes and blood pressure screening: often repeated regularly because they are so common and so treatable

Remember: If you have symptoms, don’t wait for the “right age.” Symptoms change the plan.

Vaccines and Boosters (Protecting Your Future Health)

Vaccines aren’t just for kids. At your Annual Health Check-Up, ask for a quick vaccine review and catch-up plan:

• Flu shot every year
• COVID booster as recommended based on current guidance and personal risk
• Tdap every 10 years (and sometimes after certain wounds)
• Shingles vaccine starting at age 50 for most adults
• Pneumonia vaccines for older adults, and for some chronic conditions at younger ages
• HPV vaccine up to age 45 for some adults (based on history and risk)
• Travel vaccines if you’re going abroad

Quick Tip: Bring any vaccine records you have. If you’re not sure, your clinic can often look it up, but it’s not always complete across systems.

Post-Annual Health Check-Up

The visit isn’t the finish line. Results and follow-through are where prevention actually happens.

Results, Referrals, and Repeat Tests

Before you move on with your day, commit to reading your after-visit summary. It should list diagnoses, meds, orders, and follow-up timing. If anything is unclear, send a message and ask, “What is my next step?”

Typical next steps might be:

For Vitals/Labs

• Recheck blood pressure in 2 to 4 weeks
• Repeat labs in 3 months after lifestyle changes

For Screening 

• Schedule a mammogram, colon screening, or Pap test if due

For Symptoms/Wellness

• Follow up on snoring and daytime sleepiness (possible sleep apnea)
• Start treatment or counseling for anxiety, depression, or high stress
• Discuss options for high cholesterol, including food changes and meds when needed

Quick Tip: Keep a personal health file. A simple folder or phone note with your meds, allergies, key results, and dates of screenings can prevent mistakes later.

Pick 2 of Your Yearly Goals (Movement, Food, Sleep, Stress)

Big plans fail. Small plans get done. This is the most crucial step for whole-person health: pick two lifestyle areas to improve, and track one specific area.

Ideas that work for real people:

• Walk 20 minutes, 4 days a week (simple movement)
• Add protein and fiber at breakfast (examples: eggs and fruit, yogurt and nuts, beans and toast - simple nutrition)
• Set a bedtime window and protect it most nights (sleep priority)
• Limit alcohol to a number you can stick with (mindful consumption)
• Do strength training twice weekly (bodyweight counts - functional fitness)
• Book therapy, coaching, or a stress group if you’re stuck (mental health support
• Protect hearing and skin (earplugs, sunscreen, hats - long-term prevention)

Before you close your calendar, make this a habit: set a reminder for next year’s annual visit, plus any mid-year follow-ups you agreed on.

Prevention and Peace of Mind

An Annual Health Check-Up is about prevention and peace of mind, not perfection. When you show up prepared, you and your clinician can spot quiet risks early, update screenings and vaccines, and make a plan that fits your life.

Do not put off this proactive step. Book the appointment, bring this checklist, and ask the questions you’ve been carrying around. Your health is an active process, not a passive event. Take ownership of the follow-up, embrace small, sustainable lifestyle changes, and make your yearly check-up the foundation for a healthier, more peaceful life. Don’t wait for your yearly visit if you notice red flags like chest pain, trouble breathing, fainting, new weakness on one side, or suicidal thoughts. Getting care sooner can save your life.