I figured it out. Be good to yourself.

So it begins.......

I have hit the point of my life where I need medical intervention.  I am 36 years old and I am faced with the fact that I may have to be put on blood pressure medicine to regulate my overachieving blood pressure.  My heart is "Type-A" just like my personality.

Not to bore you, but my BP (Blood Pressure) has always been 120/80 if not slightly below.  When I was diagnosed with Pregnancy Induced Hypertension with each pregnancy, my body has adapted this new high pressure as a norm.  I have had consistent high readings, so now we (my team of Geriatric Specialists and myself) are going to give a natural approach one-last-try.

The plan is low sodium, low cholesterol, low caffeine.  Fat chance. No pun intended!

When you have to watch everything you eat, it is amazing how much junk is in the food we eat.  I am amazed at how much sodium our food is packed with in today's supermarket.  I am not on my soapbox, I just want to admit that I typically paid attention to fat content, carbs, sugar and if it had High Fructose Corn Syrup.  If you are eating low sodium choices, odds are the rest is going to follow.  Healthy choices are typically low in everything if it's low in sodium.

Cholesterol is not that hard to control, plus I have high fiber diet to clean out my stressed arteries.  My cholesterol was not an issue last time - although my "bad" cholesterol was low, but my "good" cholesterol is high (must be all the avocados and nuts).

Caffeine - now I drink 12oz of caffeine per day compared to 60oz before......I know, crazy.  I drink water and I like it.

Exercise - well, I am not going more than FIVE days per week.  I run 3 days a week, cross train 2 days per week and lift weights and do ab work 5 days per week.  That is already under control.

Not only did I learn what my fate could be, I also learned another life lesson.  While reflecting on my life choices, I clearly see how our choices effect our body over time and not overnight. 

My advice for my children is this:

"you do things in your twenties which will affect your thirties and the choices you make in your thirties affect the rest of your life".

It would be a good idea to make smart choices in your twenties - but that is truly a time to figure things out and form a real sense of self.  In your thirties - get it together.  Start to live your life as your "future self".

When I lived in San Francisco, I was checking out at a grocery store (buying Hamburger Helper I'm sure) and an older woman was checking out behind me and after light chit-chat she said she was 89 years old.  I asked her what her secret was.  She said "I walk every day and I only eat organic food". 


What the heck is the deal with organic Food?  This was 2002, and I was in San Francisco of all places and organic was not that well known.  Consumers were still skeptical about the organic label and unsure if it was just an excuse to charge more.  I didn't know at the time, but that little old granny was going to fill a void that had been open.


Twenty years ago I watched my Grandma have a heart attack in front of me.  I was six years old.  I was playing in the living room and she was in the back bedroom of our ranch-style home when she had her heart attack.  I remember looking passively and not thinking it was a big deal.  I watched the paramedics come in and place her on a gurney.  I remember the oxygen cannula.  I remember that the paramedics were men.  I remember her telling one that he had beautiful, blue eyes.  I remember the broken breathing patterns and the moaning.  She passed away shortly after.  I didn't realize what an affect it would have on me 18 - 20 years later.  I have never felt the affects of that day until I started dealing with my own health issues.


So the granny I met in San Francisco may have given a little foreshadow to what my doctor and I are attempting right now.  I can break the cycle and hope that I can give my kids a healthy guide for a healthy heart.  Back to basics.


This blog is a selfish act to heal thy soul if you will, but if you can take any message away it's to "be kind to yourself".  Your grandkids will thank you later!