Pages

Showing posts with label Health. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Health. Show all posts

Monday, October 20, 2014

Survive and Thrive Blog Hop

Today's Survive and Thrive Bloghop is hosted by: Stephen Tremp,  Alex J. Cavanaugh, Michael Di Gesu, and   L. Diane Wolfe. The blogfest is meant to bring awareness of disease prevention and early detection regarding medical conditions that may be averted or treated if caught in the early stages. 

Today I'm going to tell you all a story about myself.  It was January  7, 2010 and I was driving home from work when I noticed that the world looked weird.  There were halos around every street light and the headlights coming at me were blurry and unfocused.  Getting home to my apartment I noticed the same thing- everything looked blurry, the way it does in the morning before I put my contacts in.  Trouble was, I was wearing my contacts. 

Next morning the opthamologist had no availability so I made the next available appointment for Monday morning and headed to America's Best Eyeglasses- I figured I could at least some better contacts to get me through the weekend.  They did the eye exam and found that my vision was roughly twice as bad as it had been- that's when I started freaking out.  Why was this happening?  What would cause your vision to decline that badly in such a short period of time?  I mentioned, just as an FYI, that I had a family history of diabetes but they paid no attention since at the time I was thinner than I am now.  They suggested I follow up with the opthamologist as planned on Monday.

That weekend my parents-in-law came over to Dave's house to celebrate his birthday which had just passed.  My mother-in-law, as usual, over did it on the food and I, as usual, over ate.  They hadn't even departed the house that night before I got violently ill, emptying my stomach of all that delicious food.  The rest of that night was like a series of dominoes falling.

Dave, who was needless to say very concerned, took to the internet to see what these symptoms were and asked me what else was going on.  Was this the first time I had gotten sick like this?  Well, no- now that you mention it I got got sick on Christmas eve (when I had again over-eaten), too.  And hey, haven't you been really thirsty lately?  For a few days I'd been making comments about being dehydrated which I related to the dry winter air and thought nothing of.  What about peeing?  Oh yeah, in the bathroom all the time. 

By the time I walked into the doctor's office on Monday morning Dave and I had already concluded that I was about to be diagnosed with Diabetes so that's what I told her- in addition the the blurry vision I listed off my other symptoms.  But she looked at me the same way that the people at America's Best had- a skinny girl who was just paranoid.  She ordered the blood tests just to rule it out but advised me to buy a new contact solution to clean my lenses better thinking that would solve it (her thoughts about the other symptoms I couldn't tell you).

I just got back from Quest when my doctor- who I'd called first thing that morning to tell of the weekends events- returned my call and asked what happened.  He ordered even more tests which sent me back to Quest.  The rest of that day was spent with me in front of the tv desperately trying to distract myself from the catastrophic thoughts bouncing around my head.

By the time the doctor called on Wednesday to inform me of the test results I was already certain I knew what I had, he just confirmed my (and Dave's, and my parents') suspicions.  My A1C was 9.3 (The A1C test measures your average blood glucose for the past 2 to 3 months.  Diabetes is diagnosed at an A1C of greater than or equal to 6.5) and my blood glucose was 234 (Diabetes is diagnosed at fasting blood glucose of greater than or equal to 126 mg/dl.)

I'd always said, in a morbid joke sort-of way, that I was going to end up diabetic because my father and just about everyone else on his side of the family has it.  But I never dreamed that at age 27 with a perfectly normal BMI and weight I'd be receiving the diagnosis.  

If you have a family history of this disease make sure that every professional on your healthcare team knows it and get yourself tested (the most common/easiest diagnostic test is the A1C).  If you've been told that you are pre-diabetic (an A1C in a higher than average range which suggests the disease may develop) then make the changes you need to make to your diet and exercise level.  I've known quite a lot of people who upon being told they were prediabetic massively overhauled their diet and are now fit and healthy.

The good news with all this is that the changes you need to make are the same changes that support good health overall- diabetes, heart disease, and several cancers are all linked to same the unhealthy lifestyle which means that if you get healthy you slash your chances of developing any of those issues.  If you'd like further information on early screening please visit www.diabetes.org or take their test to determine if you may be at risk.

Please visit the other healthy hoppers to learn more about health and early detection!
32.
35.

Posted by at 16 comments:
Labels: , ,

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Get Healthy Blog Hop!

A big, healthy thanks to our wonderful hosts Stephen, Alex, L.Diane and Michael.  It goes without saying that they should be among the first you hop to cause they're all awesome and they all desrve our thanks!

And now, I begin this post with a confession: I am lazy.  If left to my own devices I would come home at the end of each day, collapse on the couch in front of the tv and zone out whilst shoving junk food into my increasingly fat face.  I say this simply to distinguish myself from those who have some internal need to move- those that are so filled with nervous energy that they can't sit still.  I'm not one of those, I'm an object at rest that tends to remain at rest unless acted upon by an outside force.

And yet, I do get some exercise, vigorous at times.  I swear I'm not bragging but this post won't make any sense if I don't let you know a fact that many of you probably don't know about me: I have a 2nd Dan (2nd degree in layman's terms) black belt in Tang Soo Do.  (Very similar to Tae Kwan Do but with more Chinese influences and emphasis on way of life over sport.  Click here to learn more if you're interested.)  Needless to say, this is one of the biggest accomplishments of my life.  (Especially given that confession above.)

It also probably (hopefully) goes without saying that karate means a heck of a lot more to me than just exercise but I'm not going to get into all of that now since you're all here to get tips for staying healthy.  So what I'm going to do is extrapolate the top five universal points that will work for everyone, regardless of your particular program, and encourage those of you who are interested in my particular program to click here to learn more on that while the rest of you read on:

Number 1: The Buddy System
Humans are social creatures.  We need company to survive- it's in our DNA.  Plus, we get more accomplished when we work together.  I think this is particularly true when it comes to exercise.  You tell me to go for a mile jog cause it'll be good for me?  Ain't happening.  You invite me to go for a mile long jog with you and I can look forward to the chat with you to distract me from the hell of running?  It may very well happen, just cause you're my friend and I dig you.  And when it's more than one friend?  Needless to say the desire increases.  Heck, maybe we'll run two miles.  Or how about five- I dare ya!

My karate peeps, at this point in my training, are more than friends.  They're a second family.  I have a sense of belonging with them that I haven't encountered since college.  Every time I go, people not only know my name (you're all hearing the cheers theme song now, right?) but they are always, genuinely glad to see me.  And because of that, I am going to work harder, sweat more and push myself way beyond what I would if it were just me.  Bottom line: Strength in numbers.

Number 2: Accountability
My gym (or dojo, however you want to phrase it) takes attendance.  Black belts are required to make it to an average of 8 classes a month if we want to go for our next Dan.  That's a pretty big motivator, obviously.  But simply knowing that someone is looking to make sure I'm there (and will notice if I'm not) make me a heck of a lot more likely to go.  It's the same reason I show up to work every morning and why I get my work done while I'm there.  And it seriously works in keeping me off the couch.

Classes have set times, teachers and (I bet you saw this coming, right?) buddies.  You are significantly more likely to make it to a class with friends and a teacher you like than you are to squeeze in an hour long workout all by yourself, especially if the time varies.  And if you don't go to classes still find some way to hold yourself accountable- a reward system for you and your friend, a mutual promise, something.  It helps.

Number 3: Routine
I have karate every Tuesday and Friday.  Tuesdays I run home real quick after work, take my dog for a walk, and then head to class.  Fridays I leave work a little early so I can get to class in order to teach (white through green belts as I'm sort-of a floater).  Every week when I go over my plan for the week, those days are set.  I don't have to rearrange my schedule to squeeze in a workout, I don't have to figure out where I'm going to go- it's automatic pilot.  Automatic pilot saves a lot of time, effort and energy.

And sure, every now and again something comes up and I can't make it to class, but my normal schedule is set so that more often than not things fall into place.  It's the same reason you use a calendar to write down due dates, school semesters, soccer games and so forth. We rely on schedules.  It's what makes our world turn.

Number 4: Goals
As I said, 2nd Dan was a huge accomplishment for me.  You know what's going to be an even bigger accomplishment?  You guessed it: 3rd Dan!  And beyond that, 4th (which is masters-woo-hoo!) and so on.  But it's not just a matter of the next test, especially given how many years there are between each (one year of training for 1st Dan, 2 years for 2nd, 3 for 3rd and so on).  It's a matter of my skills.  I want to gain a better understanding of the science behind the moves we do.  I want to perform them at a higher level.  I want to reach my full potential.  We call it a martial art because the idea is that an artist has an evolved understanding beyond that of a practitioner.  They make the moves their own, create flow and rhythm and perfection with each step.  The more I learn about my art the more aware I become of how much there is that I have yet to learn so that I always feel as though my journey has just begun.

Runners I know (crazy people that they are) work the same way- if they can do a 5k, they start thinking about doing 10 miles.  If they can do 10 miles they start training for a half marathon.  If they can do that they want to conquer the marathon.  We need something to strive for, something to work towards.  It keeps us from getting stagnant.

And last but certainly not least, number 5: Have Fun!
As you probably got by now, I am not a fan of running.  In fact, I HATE running with a burning, fiery passion.  I have never managed to get myself to run on a consistent basis.  I've started routines and I think the longest I ever went consistently was two weeks until I fell off.  You will not be able to keep up with a routine- whatever it is- unless you want to go.  It's that simple.

I love karate, obviously enough.  Not just because there's so much to learn, and not just because I get to do it with really awesome people, and not even because there's a cool uniform and bad-ass belt involved.  No, it's because it's fun.  I go to class and I have fun, it's that simple.  And with the thousands of different physical movements you can do, there's no reason why everyone can't find their own particular flavor.  Find it, do it, and love it.  It makes life much better.

I hope you've found these tips useful, I know I've enjoyed sharing them.  Good luck in your quests to get healthy and now please hop along for more tips!
23.
35.
60.


Posted by at 25 comments:
Labels: , , ,

Friday, May 10, 2013

Celebrate the Small Things for May 10

Hosted by Viklit

Feeling Better  Very early Monday morning I started having trouble breathing.  I have spring allergies so it's not unusual for me to have sinus issues when I'm lying horizontally- but this was severe.  Breathing through my mouth didn't help because my throat felt like scrapping needles.  I tossed and turned, slept in short spells, and started to wonder what the hell was happening that I was so ill from allergies.  By the time I got up for work I knew it wasn't allergies.

I dressed in a daze, went downstairs to walk Buddy, and sat down 'just for a second'.  Ten minutes later I looked at the clock and wondered where my head had gone.  I called my boss and told her I wouldn't be in, collapsed back in the chair, wrapped a blanket around myself and stayed there for the rest of the day.  Then I got up and went to the doctor who took one look at my throat and ordered high dose amoxicillin for my strep throat.

I tried going in to work on Tuesday, which was a mistake, and they sent me home rather quickly.  I barely made it through the day on Wednesday.  Yesterday was the first day I started to feel like a functioning human again, and the first time I sounded like I didn't have throat cancer.  Today I actually feel pretty good, all things considered.  And that is so worth celebrating after the week I've had. 

It reminds me of how much I take my health, my mobility, the ease with which I move through my life for granted.  Makes me think I think I should be damned thankful for my health everyday, not just when I'm reminded of how much illness completely knocks you out.  I'm gonna try to make that a point from now on.

And, totally unrelated, but- One more Blog Hop!  Annie walls is hosting
starting tomorrow.  It's a chance to chime in about all things monstrous and get introduced to some other blogs who share your love of the scary.  Go sign up to share the monster lovin!

And now, as always, please hop along and keep the celebration going!
15.
25.
36.


Posted by at 8 comments:
Labels: , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)