How my journey began

To begin with I had been having some health issues recently and this doctor's visit was to check and see how my thyroid meds were doing and basically it was a yearly visit to check and see how everything is going. My cholesterol was up to 295 and my pressure had slowly been creeping up the last few visits and this time it was 135/99 or something like that. I can check to be sure. Anyway, my doctor had been wanting to put me on pressure medicine before this, but I kept asking her to let me try to bring it down on my own. And now the cholesterol was up and she wanted me on meds to lower that too. So I asked one more time to please let me try to bring them down on my own. I was really let down. More medical issues to deal with. What a bummer I thought. What is happening to me? I am 52 and going downhill for sure. At 50 I was diagnosed with hyerthyroidism (graves disease). I'll share more about this later in the story.

I wasn't really sure how I was going to do this. I was already eating what I thought was a healthy diet. I was avoiding transfats, ate mostly chicken, lean pork and 96/4 ground beef and the leanest beef cuts I could find. I went from 2% milk to skim milk and chose low fat dressings. I used smart balance margarine and ate very little eggs. So other than tweaking my already low fat diet, I began searching for supplemental help. I had heard someone on the radio talking about how they lowered their cholesterol this way. Gosh I thought I already took all the supplements available. :-)

So during all this research and speaking with a friend, Mimi, I was just about to purchase a mass of supplements to help with the cholesterol. And I thought I'd increase the amount of miles I walked.

One evening we were visiting some friends that we don't get to see often because they live in another state. It is only about a 50 minute drive. We brought some food with us and we sat down and ate supper with them. They have 6 of the most well behaved children I have ever seen. They are fun and enjoyable and just so respectful. I applaud their parents for bringing them up so well. They also have a friend in her 20's I believe that lives with them. She (Jodi) and I have become friends and she has a bowel condition that causes her allot of problems. She was sitting next to me at the supper table and I began telling her my story and how I needed to do something because the last thing I wanted to do was to go on medications for the rest of my life.

After we ate supper, we shared about what was going on in each of our lives and how the good Lord was blessing us in so many ways and just sharing life and all that means whether it be struggles and hardships or joys and peaceful days or a little of both. ;-)

After a time we needed to get back home and so while saying our goodbyes. Jodi went to another room and brought back a couple of books for me to read. She explained a little about both of them and how they were helping her. I don't remember the name of one of them. I only skimmed through it, but the other is called, "Fasting and Eating For Health", written by Dr. Joel Fuhrman. Jodi explained that she had fasted 3 or 4 different times to help her with her health and something in me just lit up and I thought, "This is my answer."



Well I need to stop here. Hopefully I can continue some more of the story either later today or tomorrow. See you then. ;-)

Eat Healthy Everyone