For years I have fought with food! My mother suffered with obesity all her life. Food was an obsession, too much, not enough, not the right sort, unhealthy, healthy etc etc. My own journey began early when I refused outright to eat vegetables that were limp and tasteless. Mum’s favourite were green beans! Even now as I write this I feel like gagging. I hated them. Anything green was cause for a 2-3 hour battle at the table.

Awful offal was another of her favourites and mine too complain about as well. I hated stews – even the smell now sets me off. It got so bad weetbix was the only thing she could entice me with or crumbed steak and potato.

Milk was another no-go zone. Have you ever tasted milk that has been left to sit in the tropical heat for at least an hour or two. Luke warm, the then cream layer would be soft and making its way throughout the little bottle. I am telling you this is no easy blog to write! The gag reflex is working well…40+ years later  I still remember it well I was so scarred!!!

However, I did make it through those childhood development years feeling great and playing sport every day of the year.

Mum should not have been worried. One thing I loved to do was sit with her after school (having had my weetbix and butter or fruit) talking and eating the vegetables she was preparing – raw. I would eat more then she was actually cooking sometimes. No – problem.

As a mum and grandmother years later I love all veges but  still only steam lightly steam,  and prefer fresh raw salad to anything.

The battle with food has continued though. As the change of hormones, sickness and inability to exercise due to injuries has taken its toll, so has the weight which I battled to keep off,  gone on.

This week has been a watershed moment. After news our daughter was suffering from a condition called pulmonary hypertension, look it up, as I don’t want to discuss the condition here,  I had enough. Our grandson her son, with Leukemia, my daughter with diabetes, greaves disease (serious thyroid condition) and now heart and lung issues!  All of them autoimmune based. Why are there so many autoimmune diseases prevalent?

I was led to a seminar where Cyndi O’Meara opened my eyes to ingredients and food additives!

I have to go right now but will be back tomorrow to discuss just why I am so angry…..

We sat with the social worker while little Josiah sat hooked up to his bloods. Colour returned to his face almost immediately. We had not realized just how pale he had become.

The social worker told them one of the family would need to become a full time carer. Sherri had just started a new job which is currently on hold.  She gave them vouchers, ideas, wisdom. She told them the protocols for treatment for the next few times. And she encouraged them to get support.

Family and friends immediately gathered around us. It was such a joy to for Sherri to have her younger sister Naomi here.

Naomi and her husband David live around the world. Literally. They are currently based in Haiti but can be anywhere at any time depending on natural disasters where David is head of disaster relief through Operation Blessing. We were so blessed when she called us on her birthday, excited because David had given her a ticket home.

Sherri is a shocker! We can never surprise her but I am pleased to announce we got her that time when Naomi sprung around the corner to greet her unsuspecting sister. She arrived a week and a half before Josiah’s diagnosis.

Then as sisters do her older sister Jo, came down from the next state to also support her. But I think the best support we received was the prayer support from around the world.

Facebook has become our friend. Delivering good news, and prayer requests. The support and encouragement has been tremendous. “Through a “friend”, we learned that Josiah means, “Healed by Jehovah”.

REFLECTIONS

This week I sat with him in hospital with chemicals flowing through his little veins. I looked over some of his new born photos and ones from the past year and I reflected.

Life is so precious. From one day to the next we do not know what is in store for us. We hold on tightly to so many “things” but when they are stripped away what is left?

You certainly see just how important our relationships are and are needed: With God – He was our first port of call. With family-we need each other despite our differences. With church – the support our church family give is amazing. With friends – a cup of coffee/tea, some empathy, some advice and more importantly words from scripture and prophetic words from God or just an ear. We were made for relationship. We are not islands. That is why facebook and other social sites are so popular. People want to connect! But that is another issue.

One thing we have had to do is learn to ASK. People want to help but they need to know how.

I thank God for this life He has given to each of us and I do not want to waste any of it. God spoke to me earlier this year and said that ALL things work together for good. ALL – that is also the abbreviation for A.L.L. This will work together for good and is doing so already.

What is happening in your world that requires a re-frame? Not all things are good but ALL things work together for good to those who are called according to His purposes. You are called to be a child of God. Embrace that and start to see His hand undo the tangled mess we call life.

It is a new day walk in His Grace and Love. Narelle

“Breathe” was the first thing I told myself and then, “Swallow”. Don’t you hate it when that lump wells up so hard in your throat?

We then asked a few questions. My daughter showing beautiful composure as she spoke with the doctor and got as much information as she could digest at that moment.

The one question I asked was did we miss something?

He had a few bruises on him. He had been grumpy, but no more than any 14 month old teething with a possible ear infection. He had been falling quite a lot but we both thought as he was holding his ear there was probably something wrong with his inner ear and therefore his balance. I had noticed that he was pulling his little shirt up and rubbing his belly. Perhaps he just had a tummy ache to match the ear pain. The bruising changed on the Friday from blue green ones to a couple of red welt types. He just wouldn’t settle though at night and by Saturday night she and her husband had had enough. She bundled him in to the car to take him for a drive. Somehow she made it to the hospital by about 2.00am. By 7.00am she was being transferred to the major hospital instead of the local one. Not only the hospital but the “oncology” ward.

The blood tests they took early in the morning showed he needed an immediate transfusion. Leukemia was being used in the same breath as immediate treatment. By that afternoon we stood around him as they hung his first bag of blood. His colour returned.

Did we miss something? I had had much sicker children and never taken them to the doctors. His colour although pale was nothing to us because he and his sisters are all pale. But the doctor assured us in fact we had noticed just about all that you would expect to see. Possibly the only thing we hadn’t noticed was acute lethargy.

By Monday morning we waited while he was sent to surgery to have a spinal tap to determine some of the extent of the disease and also the type. We waited for the results and now we were hearing them.

What do you do? What would you do?

Hashimotos or any thyroid diseases are debilitating.

Yes I am a 50+ female but was not expecting symptoms like dementia so early. Forgetting things was becoming a habit.  It wasn’t just a forgetting but a FORGETTING no memory of certain things.  The slow heart rate I had was not because I was one of those extremely fit athletic types. The stroke like symptoms and extra aches and pains and also the incredible weight gain even though I was exercising excessively were not normal. However, after collapsing as I said previously and numerous unsuccessful tests etc, Doctors “suggested” it might be time to visit some of their “other” colleagues. (Psychiatrists)I told him politely but firmly, “Thanks but no thanks” I was not experiencing some mental health issues, just because I couldn’t remember my birthdate or pick a black skinned doctors hands from my own.

I said last blog we should never just accept a no answer or the wrong one. So back to my doctor and all of a sudden she was thinking outside the box. Hashimotos. What is that I ask?

Thank God for Dr Sandra Cabot. I went home after speaking with my doctor and found a book on Thryoid conditions. Hashimotos was there. First thing that hit me was a symptom of a slow heart rate. I ticked nearly every box. Treatment…thyroxine. Within weeks two years of struggle started to dissipate.  Symptoms disappeared almost completely. I had to double the dose eventually but the results were staggering.

Lots of prayer went up too and I was well on the road to recovery.

Lessons learned.

1. Do not give up on your own beliefs.

2. There is always hope even in the darkest times – and there were some believe me.

3. Don’t accept the “inevitable”. I thought it was age starting to catch up on me but I know I can face the next 40 or so years, healthy, happy and whole.

4. Get a good doctor who is willing to think outside the box.

5. Research yourself – make some effort to be responsible for your own health. You are not a doctor but you do need to be accountable for your body.

Stay healthy. Live healthy and take care of yourself.  See you next time but in the mean time let me know if anyone else out there has had Hashimotos.

Bad move. One TIA later – Transient ischemic attack – where the blood flow stops to the brain for a short time giving stroke-like symptoms for up to 2 hours and can be a precursor to a stroke. A few days after my run and continuing to experience excruciating pain in my lower legs, travelling up to the thigh and into lung area, my daughter watched me collapse on to the floor from my office chair.

Face planted in the carpet and unable to lift my head, she asked me if I was ok? I told her I was fine and would be up in a minute. To cut a long story short and after a rush to the doctors surgery – the slurred speech left almost as quickly as it came, the veering right into walls and posts did eventually stop. It wasn’t just a TIA but I will go in to that later.

The lessons learned:

1. Do not ignore pain in your body – it is there for a reason.

2. Do not ignore symptoms of stroke or possible clots – slurring, drooping, pain in extremities or lungs. I am  not a doctor check out other sites that give more details of what to look for.

3. You know your body well. Do not take no for an answer. A doctor told me once – “You know your own body and if you are saying this isn’t me – well chances are it isn’t.” Get some tests done and don’t give up on the first try.

4. Persist with exercise once you are right and adjust according to the injuries. Don’t give up on health.

5. A small dose asprin every day is a good thing to do.

Have a great day and its good to be back. Tell me of your sports injuries and how you recovered.

It was a gorgeous day! The crowds had gathered over 3000 people to be exact and we were off with the crack of the gun. The wind was impressive to say the least and created such a head wind it wasn’t funny. Standing still was a challenge. I was strapped like Tutenkamen’s mother as my knees and ankles had been giving me heaps all week. I had yogaed my way through the previous day to ensure I was stretched in all the right places.  For some reason I hadn’t slept well the night before. But I was prepared as well as four weeks preparation gives you – with injuries. The run ran on and even though my body screamed at me at the 7km to stop, I was determined I would crawl across on hands and knees, if need be to finish the 10.5ks. Who added that last 500 meters? It was only supposed to be 10.2ks…Some sneak. Anyway I did it and have the t-shirt, medal and the photos to prove it.  Was it fun…nahhh.  But was it satisfying…yep…sure was. Came in 35th (out of 56)  in my age bracket.  We won’t mention the 90 year old who passed me and came in a few minutes ahead of me.

I learned some really valuable lessons this week but particularly on the day.

1. Don’t change how you have trained. I drink only water normally – I added gaterade and paid with pain in the stomach after the race… I sip every 15 mins – there were only two drink stops (with cups) that spilled out both sides of your mouth and the stopping slowed you down. I was wrapped up more securely then  I had been before and overheated my feet. There were a couple of other little changes that were only slight but which didn’t help with getting and staying focused.

2. Stay focused. This is lesson I have to keep learning – I had the music and the coaching ringing in my ears but sight was much more powerful and I was constantly distracted and lost momentum.

3. Its your race not someone else’s race. I was constantly feeling good as I passed someone and then let down when they would go past me. I shouldn’t have been swayed either way. It was a distraction.However there was a conflict of attitude when the 90 year old (well maybe not 90 but definitely in the 80’s) passed me. There was complete admiration and despising at the same time. Beaten by an octarian! But congratulations to him and congratulations to me. I did it! He did it too!

4. Don’t give up! Oh that last 500 meters sucked. I thought the start line was the finish line until my husband cheering me on yelled, ” not far now just up to the lights around the round- about and then back down to the finish line”…Oh that hurt and I felt the pain in my knees screaming. But I was determined to finish – and did too. There was a lot of cheering from the side line for me..even the announcer commented. I don’t know who you were but thanks. Even if I didn’t smile at the time (another thing I didn’t do that I normally do in training – it actually does help the psyche) – I was smiling on the inside.

5. Savour the moments of victory! That I did do, although a Rocky lift of the arms would have been fun – if I could have lifted them at that moment!  I hugged my friends, my husband and my granddaughter and then ran for the drinks and oranges. Oranges have never tasted sweeter.  It was a fulfilling moment.

6. Get the next challenge up and going! Don’t loose the momentum. Enjoy what you have accomplished. Have a rest – but then get up and get moving again.

7. Get to a doctor and find out what is going on with the legs! I am determined to continue so will remove all obstacles.

8. Don’t ignore the advice about body type but still do things that challenge and excite you.

Have fun as you explore other great books from my site to ensure you get as much information to transform your life and get the life you really want.  I am woman and want to be the healthiest one I can be -for myself and for my family. Come on and join me! Read up and get dressed and lets go!

http://www.digitalebooksunlimited.com/diet/exercise

http://www.digitalebooksunlimited.com/diet/bodytype

http://www.digitalebooksunlimited.com/self-improvement/lifewant

http://www.digitalebooksunlimited.com/women/womens-health

LESSONS LEARNED THIS WEEK.

1. Adjust the ‘plan’ as necessary to reach the Goal. This week I had to adjust my training schedule to relieve the wear on my ankle and knees. I could have made a choice to give up and forget it as it is too painful or readjust my plans to achieve my goal. I chose to readjust my plan.

I road an indoor bike, yoga, pilates and rested my ankles and knees. Oh and don’t forget the pain killers….

2. Keep focused. It was easy this week to loose momentum on the last run up to tomorrow.  But I had to work the mind and remind myself that I have done this run 2 times in the past few weeks and this week will be no different except for the other 1000 + people in my way! I think that will be my greatest challenge. Staying focused on my own run.

Well…the nerves are there, the clothes are ready, the shoes and strapping to go, just have to get the T shirt to prove  it this afternoon in my show bag of goodies they give us..

I have set the goal and now I will achieve the first of many in my ‘running’ career…

Check these two books out and see how to set goals to achieve the life you want. Get up get going! You can do what you set your mind to!

http://www.digitalebooksunlimited.com/self-improvement/settinggoals

http://www.digitalebooksunlimited.com/self-improvement/lifewant

10.5km, challenges some and makes others sigh. Any way  you look at it there is always going to be someone better than you spurring you on to higher challenges and others that think you are utterly amazing who you find yourself inspiring. We can not be swayed by either. Its nice to be admired and challenged but the ultimate litmus test is against yourself. I must not beat up on myself but beat myself.

LESSONS LEARNED IN WEEK 4

1.Each day I try and set myself new challenges. Better times, better technique, more fun, more smiles as the miles where on, enjoy the journey, celebrate the victories, set new guidelines. It is about yourself not others.  The Bible tells us not to compare ourselves to anyone other than Christ…oops now that is a bench mark. Stops us being proud or humiliated. There will always be someone better or not so great around us. We can not use those benchmarks.

2. Stay Focused. The moment you let your mind wander you loose momentum. Be like a lazer beam – All the energy focused in to one point.

I am preparing to do a practice run tomorrow (probably half of the runners may have the same thought) but although I am focused on the race next week I am more focused on beating my own times and continuing to increase my abilities . Passed the race I want to be able to not only jalk future races but in fact jog the whole distance and then in time perhaps tackle a half marathon and then Hmmmm….maybe a full one.  For now lets just get out of bed tomorrow and run the race track for next week’s biggie!

This is a great little info book to help you follow my example to get the life you want!

http://digitalebooksunlimited.com/wellness/lifewant

Taking a few steps helps in staying healthy in body and mind!

There are some so called “secrets” which we all know do need to remind ourselves of. Below is some access to  information that can help keep you on a balanced approach to diet and weight loss and general wellness. Check them out.

http://digitalebooksunlimited.com/women/womens-health

http://digitalebooksunlimited.com/diet/weight-loss

http://digitalebooksunlimited.com/wellness/yoga/

I was only supposed to run 8K but due to an error in bush jalking techniques I found myself lost on a delightful cross country run. It was worth it though as it was a fantastic day and the wild flowers smelt delicious. It was one of those breathtakingly beautiful mornings as I looked over the hills to the ocean.  However, it does really pay to know where you are headed. I wandered quite aimlessly there for a few k’s not really sure of where I would end up. It was all ok though and the end result justified the terrible orienteering.

Lessons learned:

1. Determine where you are going before you set off! (You are a little better equipped)  I needed a toilet stop, and water along the way and also to tell someone where I was headed in case of emergencies.

2. If you take a different turn – Don’t panic enjoy the scenery and head uphill to see where you are. Life has some unexpected turns and sometimes we feel lost but we really shouldn’t panic and if we enjoy the trip it makes the journey exciting instead of fearful.

3. Celebrate the small victories along the way.  Each Kilometer made me feel great. I let out small cheers and lifted my arms in my victory wave. I really don’t care what others think – I am pleased with my self and so was Lance Armstrong when he told me I had run my longest distance to date.

4.Run the race until you finish! Keep up the momentum. I am amazed at how often I will set myself some little goals and as I near that goal I loose momentum. What is with that? I have found though that a lot of people do that in life. They start the run in marriage, ministry, business and then loose momentum and give up all too soon just before the finish line. You have to determine to finish well. In every area. Being married for 30+ years doesn’t mean I can assume things will always be the same. I need to keep improving my relationship with my husband. I need to keep up with my kids and grandbabies. I need to be constantly  improving my brain and not become fearful and lazy in my  thinking. I need to be constantly moving forward in all that I do.

I want to live until I am 120 should Jesus not come back before then.  I need to stay fit and healthy to do that. I read of  a man who started running at 53. He is now 83 and is just completing his 13 marathon. That is an amazing man!

Then there is the story of the 92 year old who started swimming at 87 and now has something like 112 gold medals.  Amazing woman.

In the bible Caleb an old warrior was 82 and still fighting battles. That is a man of commitment! We just have to determine to run the race until we finish and  get the life we want.  Have a look at the following links and find more info on how to prepare to gain that life and the health  you need.

http://www.digitalebooksunlimited.com/wellness/lifewant

http://www.digitalebooksunlimited.com/wellness/better-health