Thursday, August 2, 2012

Out With The Bad....In With The Good

I have diabetes!  I have diabetes! I. Have. Diabetes.

If you saw me across the street or at the mall you'd never know that I was so sick on the inside.  It's so frustrating to look in the mirror and think that I have so much going on inside of me.  I feel normal.  I don't feel like my liver enzymes are high or that I'm having weird numbers on my blood work for my pancreas.  I don't feel like my kidneys are kicking out sugar. I just want to eat what I want to eat and keep doing what I've been doing since January....and keep losing weight.  I have 15 or 20 pounds to go!

I think I would have an easier time making the changes in my life if I felt this HUGE change for the better.  Sounds reasonable right?  Last December I went to see my doctor because I was feeling like hell.  I was tired, exhausted like I cannot even begin to describe.  I remember thinking that I could barely function enough to clean my house, grocery shop, and run my kids all over the countryside.  It wasn't the kind of tired where I slept all the time, because I wasn't sleeping.  I had to take medication at night to be able to sleep.  It was the feeling of having zero energy and I was faced with all the tasks of being a housewife and mom.  It was incredibly frustrating.

It was the beginning of my journey, to find out that I was in fact sick.  Honestly, I thought I had a thyroid issue.  I know it can be hereditary and my Grandma was on medication most of her adult life for thyroid problems.  But my thyroid was just inside of normal....so that didn't answer my question.  My thoughts went on to my blood pressure.  It was high and my pulse at rest was well over 100.  That needed to drop 20 points....so more medication!  I was told that my sugar was a little high so I had to come back in 3 months for more blood work.

I started walking and working out, and eventually went on to Zumba.  I started losing weight but I still felt like crap.  I just had no energy and generally didn't feel good.

Here we are 7 months later and I now know that the problem was diabetes.  So back to my earlier thoughts....about making a huge change in my life....after 8 months of feeling like crap I think it became normal for me.  Being tired, not feeling good, not sleeping....it became my normal.  How is a person supposed to make these big changes to their lifestyle when the feeling of ick has become normal?

I started out on an oral medication but my numbers were still nearly 400.  So you know, normal numbers would be:  fasting/first thing in the morning my glucose number should be 70-110.  When I test my blood right before a meal it should be 70-120 and 2 hours after I eat it should be 70-160.  So, 300 or even 400 aren't good!  As a matter of fact when you start getting into those 400 numbers you put yourself at higher risk for stroke or heart attack.

Hello!  That's not a good enough reason to get your shit together?

My doctor set me up with Diabetes classes through our hospital.  It's 6 weeks long and it really has helped me to know what my numbers should be, how I should be eating, and to understand how serious diabetes is.  (So why am I all of the sudden craving an ice cold can of Coke?)  The RN running the class got me onto Byetta, which is lowering my blood sugar.  I'm at least running in the high 100's to low 200's.  Much better than I was...it's dropped 150 to 200 points so I'm getting to a safer level.  If I could get my eating right, I'd be in target.

But that goes back to my original problem.  I feel like shit, but it's become so normal to me that I don't feel like I'm sick.  What will one hershey bar do to me?  I'll worry about the diabetes tomorrow because I can't feel my pancreas, liver, and kidneys shouting at me.  We got a meal plan flyer to follow from the diabetes class.  It's not a specific diet, but a list of foods, their carbs translated into a point system, and a plan for each days carb limits.  I can look up any food and determine the number of points to count toward my carbs for that snack or meal.  There are free foods that don't count, but it's a constant checking and measuring type of thing that I don't like.  It's probably why I've never really been very successful at dieting.  I can't stand all the work to prepare meals and such....even worse I have to do this at the grocery store.  I have to check my charts before I buy something because I don't know if I can have it.  Ugh!

So I'm sitting here wondering how I can make this big lifestyle change with my food.  I've lost weight because I've cut back.  That doesn't mean that I have avoided sugar.  Well, since I was diagnosed with diabetes I've really tried to avoid it.  I'm not sure how I can force myself to be more careful with the food when I'm not feeling like it will make a difference.  Oh, the nurse in the diabetes class expained it all and scared me...terribly.  Some really terrible stuff can happen to you if you ignore your diabetes.  I just don't know why I'm being so stubborn about it.

Maybe I've forgotten what it feels like to feel good.  I've been thinking about that for the last couple of weeks.  People ask me if I'm feeling better now that I'm taking medication and giving myself 2 shots a day?  No, not really.  I think that I would if I could get my eating squared away.  I'm not eating alot, the shot I take makes me feel full very quickly.  I think the bread is my downfall.  I could live on bread.  It's hard for me to give up.  How am I going to give up bread.....and pasta?

So, that's my dilema.  I don't know what the answer is yet.  I'm working on it.  I keep trying to scare myself into submission....not working yet.  My husband isn't really being supportive on this either.  I think he is doing what I described above, I don't look sick on the outside so he doesn't understand how lousy I feel.  Well, that's a whole other topic for a whole other day. 

I've just started reading the "Fifty Shades" books.  I'm on book 2 and I'm curious to get back to Mr. Grey and Miss Steele...so until next time...

Monday, July 30, 2012

Hand Over That Hershey Bar

I'm sitting here surfing my Dish Network and I'm reminded why I dislike an election year so much.  I'm not worried about who I'm voting for, I've already made up my mind.  For me, it's time for change because we DID build that! ;)

What I don't like is all the commentary.  I happend to flip over to Fox News and O'Reilly is on and they are discussing who Romney's VP choice will be.  They are listing the names of several people and their pro's and con's as a choice for Vice President.  Boring!  It's the same thing when they have Karl Rove on there talking about the electoral votes and how they predict each state will shake out on election day.

It reminds me of football season.  We are a football family and we love football season.  My husband is on the countdown to football!  I love it too, I love college football the most.  It's new and exciting every year.  And as far as the NFL, I enjoy NFL games but we're Browns fans.....so we suffer.  I can watch football all weekend long.....what I hate is all the commentary.

When you start getting into football season, the commentary starts on Monday and they will talk ALL week about the games coming up on the weekend. The weekend goes by and all the games are played, and then on Monday and Tuesday all you hear is commentary on the games that took place on the previous weekend.  You get to Wednesday and the commentary changes over to talk and predictions about the upcoming games that coming weekend.

It's a cycle that plays over and over all season long.  I keep telling my husband, I love to watch the football games, but the other 5 days of the week all he watches on television is commentary on what players should have done last week and what they need to do next week!  By the end of the season, I've worked up a pretty good attitude toward the commentators.

I know, the whole thing is riduculous.  What am I complaining about?  Well, Bill is 15 minutes into his program and onto his 3rd guest discussing the VP choices!  Typically, I would change the channel to Food Network, but I'm struggling with food tonight, and it makes me hungry.  Seriously!  My body is all screwed up right now with this whole new diabetes issue.  I'm not hungry all day and don't want to eat much.  5pm hits and I'm starving!  I'm fighting myself to not eat.  It's taken me way too much time, and I've put in way too much work to lose this 45 pounds....I don't want to put any of it back on!

My husband got on the treadmill today, I wish that I had.  I let the day get away from me.  I was pouring vanilla candles and my coffee bean candles, I did some laundry and hung it on the line, and even worked in the garden some.  Before I knew it the day was gone.  It really ticks me off that I don't get on that treadmil. I haven't been to Zumba in forever.  The heat just kicks my behind....I can't handle it.  One of the problems with having asthma I guess....but my body just can't handle it.  I'm trying to hold steady until I get back to zumba.  I'm telling you....losing weight just sucks.  No really, it totally sucks.

Imagine the feeling of being able eat anything and anytime I want....without any consequences.  No high blood pressure, no high cholesterol, no weight gain.  It's so far out of reality I don't even know why I'm thinking it.  Well, it's out there for me anyways.  I'm 42 years old, I have diabetes, and the reality is that I have to diet and be careful what I eat.  FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!

I think this lack of chocolate is really affecting my mood. :)

Well, I'm off to the land of nod. A busy day tomorrow with a playdate for the kids in the morning!  Until next time....

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Taking The High Road

It's been so long since I've written...it was January for crying out loud.  So much has happened in my life, alot of really big changes!  I enjoy writing here, it's so relaxing to me and very therapeutic....yet I find it hard to get to it.  It's unfortunate because it's something I enjoy so much.

The last time I wrote, I was talking about losing weight and getting healthier.  Losing weight.....the reason I started my blog.  To reach out to other mom's who need to lose weight and get on a healthier path. 

I'm proud to say that I have now lost a total of 44.5 pounds.  I can't even believe that I've lost all that weight.  I look in the mirror and I see the same person, but I'm told that's normal.  The big difference is in the way my clothes fit.  I've had to get rid of all my big clothes because none of them fit me anymore.  I've gone down several pants sizes, which is great!  All of my dress clothes are way too big so they have been given to Goodwill.

And my husband, he's exactly the same size as he was in January.  Go figure, easy off...easy on!

If you've never struggled with your weight, you really can't understand how hard it is to lose it.  We don't put the weight on overnight, but once we start to work on ourselves and try to get the extra weight off, it feels like torture.  It's hard to lose weight.  I've said it again and again.

I'm going to go back a little further.  I've made some really positive changes in my life over the last year.  I feel like I'm a much happier and more positive person than I used to be, and I could even see the changes when I read back over old posts.

Around Christmas time I had gone to my doctor because I was just feeling really crappy.  I couldn't put my finger on it, but I didn't feel good.  Well, she had some concerns with my bloodwork, so I went back after 3 months, then again 3 months later.  I'm making a point, I promise.  I've struggled with high blood pressure for several years and even on my meds, I was having very high blood pressure.  Seems like I take a hand full of pills every day for my BP.  I thought it was making me feel lousy.

I was wrong, 3 weeks ago I was diagnosed with Diabetes!  Most people would say, "oh that's not the end of the world". I'm here to tell you, my doctor has me going to 6 Diabetes classes to learn about the disease and how to treat my body to take care of the diabetes.  What it's doing is scaring the hell out of me. 

Diabetes if hereditary and my family is full of diabetics.  I had no idea how serious it was, or how sick a person is on the inside when they have diabetes.  I'm very scared!  It it causing problems with my liver and my pancreas.  Medication hasn't brought my numbers down so now in addition to oral medication I have to begin 2 injections a day of a second medication.

When my doctor told me I sobbed.  I have a needle phobia like you wouldn't believe.  Now, I'm having to poke my hand or arm 3 times a day to check my blood-sugar levels.  I think that so many years of not taking care of my body has put me in this position.  I'm very scared about what could happen.  I'm still learning about the disease, I know that it's a progressive disease so I need to take care of it to slow it down.  It's very tedious work to count out the carbs for each meal, and measure everything you eat.  I still don't have the hang of it because  I was standing in my kitchen today feeling dizzy and knew that I was going to pass out.  Luckily, Scott was standing right there and kept me from going down on the wood floor.  A big eye opener and something scary that I've never experienced before.

So at a time when I thought my life was heading in a certain direction, I've been slapped in the face with a very scary disease.  I'm doing my best to learn about it so I'll know how to take care of myself.  I've lost alot of weight but still have 20 or 25 pounds to go.  I know that I said my goal was 40 pounds, but I also knew that once I lost that I might feel like I needed to lose more. 

And thank goodness for my friend and neighbor, Mindy, she has been dragging me out to Zumba!  That's what has helped me to lose the weight.  It's been terrible how the last few weeks so I haven't been able to Zumba, but as soon as it's back into the 70's....I'm there!

Well, I have so much more to talk about but it's late and my post is already long.  I guess I'll be changing the focus of my recipe blog too, in light of my change in diet.  I'm not going to let this get me down though, I've worked too hard to take better care of myself!  It's just a new chapter of my life that I didn't expect.

Until next time....

Thursday, January 19, 2012

An Up-hill Battle

Losing weight is definitely an up hill battle.  Unless you're a man....then it's more of a small incline.  I started dieting 2 1/2 weeks ago and I've lost about 10 pounds and I'm pretty happy with that.  Scott has been on the same diet and has lost about 20 pounds.  Figures!

I feel like I'm hanging in there.  Changing your lifestyle cold turkey can be a really tough thing to do.  I'm so used to eating salty and sweet foods.  Chocolate can soothe away any of my problems.  And after the HUGE sugar overload that happens around the holidays, I feel like I really did quit good food cold turkey.

I'm trying to keep things interesting by recording shows on the DVR.  I can watch them while I'm on the treadmill and skip the commercials.  I'm wishing it was spring so I could walk outside.  The time seems to go alot faster when you're walking outside.  I think that boredom is half my battle when it comes to staying on the treadmill for longer periods of time. 

Tonight, I was standing in my closet and I started wondering if I could fit into some of my smaller jeans.  I've already gone down one pant size and I have a stack of jeans that are the next size down.  I decided I was either going to be really happy or I was going to see that I need to work even harder.  My jeans went on comfortably and I can easily wear them tomorrow.  So, that's 2 jean sizes.  YAY!!!!

I was pretty excited.  When you look at me, you probably wouldn't notice these 10 or so pounds.....but I notice it when I put my clothes on.  I started rummaging through my closet and I pulled out a really fancy silk robe that I've had for years.  It's floral and so beautiful.  It was so expensive and I saved for a long time to buy it.  So there it's been hanging in my closet for more years than I care to admit.  For alot of years it was just too tight across my shoulders, but tonight it went on and it was also comfortable.

The last thing I tried on was some pretty dark blue lingerie.  It has spaghetti straps and it's the softest silkiest material I've ever had on.  I bought it probably two years ago and it's been haning out in my closet ever since.  I've never put it on.  Well, I did try it on when I bought it but it was snug.  Way too snug for me to wear it in front of Scott but I was sure that I was going to lose weight and it would look good on me.  Not the case!  I put that night gown on tonight and it fit me.  I was so happy! 

I'm not saying that I look super-good in....well.....anything.  But when I put that lingerie on I felt good.  I have 30 pounds to go until I'm at my goal weight but at least I know that I can put some of my clothes on and have them fit me.

I think that I was starting to burn out on this diet.  I was starting to feel like the weight wasn't coming off fast enough.  I know they say you aren't supposed to lose weight super fast, but when you are dieting and working out every day you want the weight to come off fast.  Even though it put 10 years to put the weight on.  Back to my point.....I was starting to get really tired of the treadmill so I try a few things on out of my closet and it just makes me feel motivated again.

There are things hanging there that are smaller than what I tried on tonight.  It makes me want to get into those clothes.  I guess I just needed to find what motivates me.  I tried to get Scott to put together a reward type of thing for our weight loss.  We couldn't really think of anything.  I was thinking a new wardrobe if I lost so much weight.  Or even a long weekend trip someplace for the two of us.  It boiled down to the fact that whatever the reward was, it was going to come out of the same checkbook that I have.  I'm too cheap to spend money on me, so I couldn't get motivated by that. 

And if I wanted to reward that involves other fun things....well Scott has a habit of not following through with those types of things.  Maybe that will be better once we get ourselves in better shape too?  :)

I guess I need to just keep reminding myself why I wanted to get healthy in the first place.  I'm 42 and I have young kids.  Simply put, I want to be around for a long time.  I want to see them grow up and I want to see my grandkids (someday) grow up.  That's my motivation.

Until next time....

Sunday, January 8, 2012

Here We Go Again

The holidays are past us and things are getting back to normal.  I finally got all of my Christmas decorations taken down and put away.  It takes me at least a week to get everything out and put up around the house and then time seems to fly by.  I feel like we only have our decorations out for such a short time considering how much it takes to put it all out and then put it all away.

I'm actually not complaining, I enjoy doing it.  This has been an odd holiday season.  Living in Michigan, we get used to a white Christmas.  We didn't have a white Christmas this year.  I heard on the news that we've had snow for Christmas 9 out of the last 11 years.  I guess we must have lived up north during those few years without snow, because I don't remember a green Christmas in a very long time....more than 11 years.

It's Saturday night and I'm sitting here feeling extremely BORED!  I let the kids stay home from school yesterday and we went out and about shopping.  And I took them for lunch.  We really had a great day.  None of the kids did any fighting and that's pretty good considering we made 3 stops and were gone for about 4 1/2 hours.  We went to Mongolian BBQ for lunch and it totally sucked!  And to make it worse, it was $40 for us to eat.  It's a buffet for crying out loud and one trip to the buffet for 2 adults and 2 little kids was $40!  And the food wasn't that good.  So I won't be going back.  I have better things to do with my money.

Today is my mom's birthday.  We were going to stop and see her and Scott and I ended up having a little "difference of opinion" as he calls it.  I call it a fight.  I hate fighting with him, even though I had good reason to be mad.  It's been a really long time since we had an argument and I could have done without this one.

Our "get healthier" journey is going well.  We're only in our first week and Scott has lost 13 pounds and I've lost 4 1/2.  Seriously, that ticks me off.  (That's not what our fight was about, lol)  I'm not saying that weight loss is "easy" for men.  I think that losing weight and getting in shape is hard for anyone.  That's why we aren't all size 2.  However, I think that men get better results than women do.  Scott say's its from being in the military for 10 years.  He got up this morning and got on the treadmill and jogged for over 500 calories.  I got on the treadmill after him and went for 125 calories.  I can't jog for 30 minutes, I'd have a stroke.

True to my typical nature, I was ticked off tonight and when I'm mad...I want to eat.  But, I had melon so it's not my usual.  I probably would have had some cheese and crackers (like Ritz which are high in calories) or chips or something.  So, I'm not really happy with myself for eating, but at least I didn't eat something that was completely bad for me.  It's a step in the right direction.

For dinner I think I did pretty good.  I buy bags of frozen chicken breast tenders so I always have chicken on hand.  Scott's a beef guy but I try to discourage it when we are dieting, I'm a chicken kind of girl anyways.  So, I sliced the ckicken thin and did a saute with a drizzle of olive oil and some garlic powder.  I also sauteed red, yellow, and orange mini peppers and a little onion along with slices of yellow squash....yummy!  Add some fat free cheddar and we had really awesome fajita's.  I was completely shocked but even my kids liked them.  I didn't make them use reduced calorie cheese tho.  I didn't really even notice a difference.  Plus, I made rice so the kids added that in.  I guess theirs was more like a burrito.

Anyhow, it turned out absolutely delish and we kept our calories to a minimum.....about 400 for the meal.  That's within 30 calories of a diet frozen meal. 

I'm trying to learn how to cook meals with less calories and fat.  During the week we are doing frozen diet meals or a low calories sandwich with baked chips.  I'm still cooking for the kids, so that's interesting....but I'm doing ok.  And Chicky is helping me.  Jason has even been cooking so that helps. 

For dinner last night I bought boneless turkey breat tenderloins.  I sliced it into small strips and then Jason cooked it on the grill.  I covered it with foil and sprayed it with a little non-stick spray.  Add the turkey and a little bit of Harlans seasoning and cook until browned.  I also have a grill basket for veggies so we had the mini peppers, onions, and mushrooms.  Throw a little organic vegetable seasoning from Costco on it and a dash of kosher salt....can't beat it.  The kids went nuts for that too.  Was nice to have a little normal food after eating frozen diet meals and low calorie sandwiches all week.

Maybe I should be writing this part of my recipe page?  Oh well, doesn't matter.  I'm just trying out different ideas and trying to see what works for all of us.  It's not easy to please 6 people, especially when two are dieting.  But I want my kids to eat healthier too.  Jason is loving it because he is very aware of what he eats and he works out every day.  He keeps telling me how happy he is to see healthy food in the house and that I'm feeding them healthy food.  He moves back to his dorm tomorrow....I'll miss him like crazy!

Well I've rambled on long enough.  If you have any ideas or suggestions for our diet or workouts, please share!  After a week I'm already getting super bored on the treadmill.  We rearranged our family room so it faces the TV and I've been watching shows on my DVR, but I'm still getting bored.  I'll be glad when spring gets here and I can walk outside.  I should anyways since it's been in the 40's the last couple days.

Until next time....