I don't know how I did it. I honestly don't know how I pulled off being a full time working mom for 7 years. As much as I enjoyed my work, loved my co-workers, and needed the money I wouldn't go back to being away from my family like that. Although I will admit the full time job I have now, the one of fighting this dis-ease makes my life seem crazier then it did before.
I really feel like we are at a crossroads with treatment and I don't know where to go next. I know I keep saying this, but it is beyond frustrating to not have a standard checklist of where to start. In reality Lyme is only part of the picture. That is why the name change to MCIDS (multi chronic infectious disease syndrome) seems better. Even with that there is so much more going on. You can have immune system, hormone, genetic, detox, a million more issues. There isn't even a standard list of tests to run. I feel fortunate on some level to have a lot of options presented to me over the past few weeks. Trying to research all of them and make a decision is proving to be very difficult. Then reality once again slaps you in the face and it really comes down to money. Money that my family doesn't have. Add to this that we have two children that we desperately need to get help and it just all becomes too overwhelming. With each passing moment there is mounting pressure on what to do for our girls. Every complaint of pain or some weird symptom almost paralyzes me and I desperately want to get them well so they do not have to endure this. What are we supposed to do? At this point all I can do is pray that God leads us where to go. I have at least 6 health practitioners that I am considering seeing. There is definitely a lot of information to review.
With all of that being said, I am proud of the fact that I am really making progress in the areas of diet and exercise. It has become clear to me that there are multiple things out of my control and that I will benefit by focusing on what I can control. Diet and exercise are the two main things I have been working on. The 30 days of clean eating my family tried was really difficult but it was definitely a catalyst for change. We have continued to pursue changing our diet and it is getting easier as time goes on. We have reduced the amount of grain, sugar and dairy we are eating over all. Most of the dairy we do eat is now RAW. We have increased the amount of fruits and vegetables we eat, most of which are organic. The amount of packaged food we eat is definitely reduced. I can't say that I feel amazing but I am losing my cravings for the junk and it just doesn't sound appealing to me anymore. My acupuncturist really wanted me to focus on eating cooked vegetables for a week and I really started to lose my cravings when I did that. I am happy that we are making improvements and that my husband is on board as well. The kids are not thrilled about it but they are coming around to the idea a little at a time. My six year old is still suffering from low iron so we are really focusing on bringing those levels up. An important thing you may not know is that dairy can actually bind the iron while vitamin c helps it be absorbed. So making our green smoothies with spinach and no dairy (use almond milk) or eating eggs with orange juice are things we are doing to help her out. We also just got a new juicer. I have researched and agonized over the blender vs juicer dilemma. The bottom line is you need to do what works for your family. We have a Ninja blender for our smoothies and are now using a Jack La Lanne Power Juicer for our juice. This just seemed to fit our budget and needs the best. Do what works. We are still getting amazing benefits and are eating healthier that we ever have.
Now comes the exercise. I know I said a few weeks ago that I was going to put it all out there so I was accountable to people other than my husband for my health. Although I probably won't post pictures until later I will say my starting weight is 152 lbs. This is one of those things that is very personal. I think especially for women. I know I shouldn't have a magic number but I kind of do. I am treating it more like a goal number but when I am comfortable with how I feel and look then that is what will matter regardless of what the scale says. So my goal would be to get down to 135 lbs. However since muscle weighs more than fat, I may not reach that goal. I just want to feel strong and be confident in how I look. So my journey to being in better shape has started. I ended up finding an amazing trainer and I have had the best workouts of my life with him. It has only been a few sessions but I am a total believer in his approach and can't wait to see my transformation over the next few months. The story of how I found him is really cool but I will have to save that for another day. The one thing I have not been happy with is my heart, but I am not going to quit. My heart rate was 183 during my workout out the other day. It is very frustrating but the cardiologist says its fine. I can't say I agree but they assured me I don't have anything life threatening. If I fall over and die due to a heart issue you heard it from me, the cardiologist said not to worry.
I am waiting for some test results for my adrenal glands and have some more information on my thyroid issue but that too will have to wait until next time. Thanks for following along and supporting me in this crazy journey. For all my San Diego friends, the San Diego Lyme Walk is Saturday October 13 at Seaport Village. Would love to see you there! Hugs to all my fellow warriors out there. Don't give up. Take it one moment at a time and fight hard. (I will update my current protocol too)
