I went for a 'Chronic illness' check up yesterday at my GP practice. Just another low budget 15 min. cursory once-over ; BP. heart-rate, weight, height etc. to gloss over the lack of proper aftercare thanks to Tory miserliness.
So the practice nurse wound up the session with advice on a healthy lifestyle, with questions like 'Are you eating plenty of fruit, fresh veg, & cooking meals rather than using those nasty ready meals, avoiding sugar & fatty foods and getting plenty of exercise each day ?
Fiction :- I'm nodding vigorously to all these and even throwing in a few positive extras.
Fact :- I've done lots of cabbaging for the past three months and, since Christmas, been pawing at those chocolates which I asked everyone not to buy me 'cause I can't stop eating 'til I feel sick.
Result :- Feeling disgusted and determined to shape up. I hate Winter but that's not a good enough excuse I know. I need to take responsibility for my own health and stop eating cr*p such as ready meals, cake and chocs.
So this is a confessional which, now I see in print, will hopefully take on an extra potency and urgency !!
Mitigation :- I've always, up until recently, eaten healthily with loads of fresh veg., fish, no red meat and no fatty or processed foods. Just got really low and a bit lazy this winter.
Anyone else got anything they'd like to own up to ?
Fatter Cat xxx
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cat3
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I'm impressed ; you'll have to send us the recipe ! When I'm back on form I'll be back to my own nut roasts and home made quiches ; just needed a kick up the rear......................
.........................that came in the form of the new ITV series 'Sugar Free Farm' last night and it's pretty appalling to learn how much sugar everyday products contain. I might have to think twice about Heinz tomato ketchup in future ! xx
Likewise last year I was in the age bracket that the government has specified we should be invited for a health check up. All the routine things you have mentioned Cat, plus I had a chlorestrol and blood sugar blood test. Outcome - B.P and chlorestrol raised and of course my weight and BMI putting me in the overweight range! Told to adjust my diet and increase exercise but not given any leaflet info which would have been helpful and I have to admit anything I was told I don't remember! Think it's about 'numbers' as the nurse wasn't following anything up so it seems the info was put on the computer and ignored! so much for identifying early the health risks so that interventions can be put in place to lessen the impact of chronic problems on the NHS! Bit of a half-hearted screening I think! Comfort eating seems to be a coping activity these days plus due to my difficulties managing the process to cook meals - ready meals are essential but it is not by choice as I always used to cook 'healthy meals' from scratch. I hate how my bi has changed me and my life!
Yes I agree Caroline.............it is all about numbers and ticked boxes.
But it obviously got me thinking, to the point where I need to get back to basics. I really believe that the more basic food is, the better.
It's tempting when you're tired, to pick up a microwave dinner. But the other night I realised that it had taken just as long to cook a chicken & roast potato readymeal as a good, wholesome meal with a few minutes preparation.
Oh god, I must beware of becoming a lifestyle bore just because of a TV programme.
The other thing though really, which I haven't seen mentioned (not to say it isn't there, but I'm supposed to be working so I've only skim read) is the motivation thing. From my perspective at least - I exercise a decent amount now because I cycle 5 miles to and from town daily but that's a choice I made of necessity rather than decision I managed to motivate myself to make. As far as preparing meals and other healthy things you can do, it's hit and miss at best.
Reduced executive function seems to be a constant with head injuries, and that's what deals with motivation.
Quick story to show how difficult I find it to change even with what we might expect to be ample motivation:
Many years ago (but still post-injury) I lived in shared accommodation, and got chatting to a girl on a team night out. She came back to mine, but the romantic interest did not last when she saw the state of my room (tidying is one of those inconveniences my brain can't process any more). Embarrassed beyond belief, I resolved that I would ALWAYS keep my room tidy from that moment forth and spent the day tidying and cleaning. It lasted about two weeks.
Robert Downey Jr said that giving up drugs was easy, *deciding* to give up drugs was the hard part. I imagine any dilemma is exacerbated for head injured people whose motivation/evaluation/decision making is already impaired.
I couldn't agree more about the 'deciding' part Fuzzy.
I'd tried so many times to stop smoking, pre BI, and failed miserably every time...................completely addicted !
But being in ICU with hands bandaged like footballs to stop me pulling out tubes, not to mention other obvious constraints, there was nothing for it but to withdraw disgracefully, which I apparently did with some pretty unladylike language.
So, after a couple of months I was cured, though I still craved for a while afterwards. I still maintain that the SAH was a blessing in disguise....................haven't touched one since !
You have hit the nail on the head Fuzzy when you speak of Executive Dysfunction and motivation. That is a real problem for me! I know things need to be done or what I want to be doing but .........I can't get off the starting block! I now employ a cleaner and gardener because things were getting into dreadful states. Yet I needed neither before my bi when I was working fulltime as well! It it was just me then I guess I would just create a 'squat' type living but I have a now 10 yr old son (5yrs when my bi happened) as well so it was not ok! And yes it is all exacerbating by the problem with 'deciding'!
Yep, I smoke. More than 20 a day during relapse out of worry/frustration. I use a safety pin to put holes across in 2 directions just above the filter, in a desperate effort to inhale less. I can't afford this and it is utterly unhealthy. I am ridiculous .
I also eat often from tins and packets, microwave/kettle heated. I prefer to go out instead of staying in and getting on with boring household tasks so use my energy up in the wrong way and get behind.
I am not as I was and often refuse to confront facts and admit it. I am an ostrich.
I conclude in this report that Angela needs to apply herself more, take better care of her health and consider a more appropriate job for her abilities : ) x
angela since my stroke i havent smoked, the ones i had in my pocket the wife confiscated. then on the third day, god created glenn, glenn was a wise man, bearing gifts........nicotine patches....and glenn said unto george " with these patches i thee smother and in 3months time....you wont need another.
actually angela it didnt take 3months because of my bi i forgot to change the patch and havent craved a cigarette since.
Blimey Angela, I thought the pin was my own personal invention. I used to keep a large-headed pin in the end of the pack and use it just as you describe.
I tried many times to stop but always failed ; couldn't sustain the willpower.
Can't take any credit whatsoever for giving up 4 years ago as I'd been 'out of it' in ICU for a month before realising who I was, never mind that I'd gone through withdrawal. I'm told I was constantly pleading for a ciggy, but don't remember any of that.
We do what we can Angela, and though I'm free of it now thank god, I don't underestimate the almost impossible task of quitting smoking.
Hope you can get the job situation resolved ; it would probably go a long way toward improving your health.
Yes, I carry a pin through the top of the cigarette pack lid !
Ed bought me an electronic cigarette - two problems : I forget to charge it and I can't use even the lowest nicotine level liquid because the throat hit just makes me cough ! So I have to use nicotine free which just makes me want a real one after a bit. Partner smokes too so no getting away from it ! Maybe a nicotine patch over my mush would work !
I'm a bit under rather than over in the weigh in - I'm holding the spasticity and extra physical effort required responsible for that, plus my capacity has recently reduced.
One thing I love is rocking chairs - really relaxing, great for gentle leg exercise and added bonus of burning calories if you wish. The glider kind are gentler on my muscles.
I toyed with the idea of a manual running ( or walking, for me ) machine during relapse as bad weather was preventing me from doing as much as I would have liked.
I soon realised that most have supernarrow belts and would be unsuitable for my wider gait.( It was 22 inches when I measured ! )
I think with the onset of better weather our gardens keep us active : )
I do love all kinds of fruit and often snack on whatever is on offer at the Supermarket ( yes, I am the one regularly haunting all the bargain sections ! ) so at least it is a nod in the healthy direction : )
I am back to burning tongue sessions at certain times of the month so like you, foods I usually like don't always taste good and can aggravate it.
Best of luck with your new beginning !
Angela x
Oh and I agree with Sambs in that I feel some of us may have a subtle metabolism change with BI. x
Hi All, well what can I say! All of the above apart from he smoking.
Need to lose 5kg to put me back in the overweight range, yep I am and have been for over 2 yrs now, obese! Only just, if there is such a category, but obese never the less. But no advice given by my GP when I told them, cos they know the difficulties I have exercising.
Been today for first appointment for acupuncture. They were very hopeful that I could be helped with my symptoms plus my metabolism needs a boost and it should help that too.
I can walk and swim, I've been on a 1300 cal a day diet for months now, it keeps my weight stable but I need to up the exercise to make any inroads now, I can't see me eating any less than I do now.
I've not tried riding a bike since my BI, I don't trust myself on the roads plus my balance is bad enough when walking, need I say more.
Before my BI I followed the Dukan Diet, it advocates a high protein diet, and that really suited me , maybe I'll resurrect that sometime soon.
Any exercise that waggles my head around is not good.
I'd actually decided a couple of weeks ago to buy a new dinner set, just because I think that smaller plates are good reminders to eat less.
A reasonable excuse recently for taking less exercise has definitely been the weather 'cause I don't like gyms and I can't swim so walking is what I normally stick to and enjoy.
We're lucky to live close to the Mersey Valley so have miles of picturesque walks, but not in this weather !
'Keep moving' is what the nurse advised Janet ! We'll see. Love Eileen xxx
I sometimes eat a meal like rice and stir fry or a pasta bake out of a cereal bowl, that ensures a smaller portion., I'll have to consider smaller dinner plates too.xx
I've just read through the replies again and I just had to chip in again to say that, unless you ate the whole turkey and the whole Xmas cake and all the mince pies since I last saw you, I think you're a long way off 'obese' Janet.
Some of the folk I see around town (usually wearing leggings & too-tight tops) are obviously well into that category and many are a few decades younger than us. But I'd describe you as a smart, bonny looking lady ................................... and absolutely not obese !! xxx
Eileen, I don't think I am obese either but that's what the figures say! I know I'm overweight but I'm not hung up on it and keeping my wetght stable so alls good.
I agree, you shouldn't eat less than that long term.
It is really difficult finding the right type of exercise to suit our abilities. I can't swim, for instance but it would be great supportive exercise for my problems. Do you use a stick to help with your balance outdoors ?
I have been looking on Ebay at balancing boards, wondering if it may help me. You can get mini balance beams for the floor too lol - I may just be the next Olga Corbet yet ! : )) x
No, Angela I don't use a stick any more, I manage fine without one now. Still very dodgy balance wise but if I don't turn too quickly or mind people thinking my unsteady gait is due to alcohol problems, then I'm ok.
My daughter researched what calorie intake someone of my build needed to maintain a healthy body with restricted mobility and found that 1300 is ok, so that's what I stick to, I'm just hopeful that when the weather improves and I move about more, then the weight will drop off!!!!!!!! Well that's the theory anyway.
Perhaps I should look at the balance beam idea ,xxxx
you could do with varying your daily calorie intake to fool your body into converting body fat into fuel.
you said you followed the dukan diet thats a similar thing
losing weight isnt easy janet, when i had my stroke i was 141/2 st muscular, but a pot belly, im now 21st8lbs.....i was 22st2lbs when i started my diet
Hi Steve, no to the exercise bike, have one at home but can't lean forward, not good for my head. Now if my gym did a recumbent bike that'd be great, I can't afford to buy one at present but maybe something to aim for
.
I was at work and pre bi when I did the Dukan diet, found it quite easy at the time, I just need to lose 10 kg to get me back to the weight I was when I left hospital and 15 kg would get me back to pre BI should be do- able. Here's hoping.
janet it looks as though i may be on dodgy ground with some of the members talking about this.
i was only in hospital 5days, my stroke left me with weakness down the left hand side, but i could walk ok.
after a couple of weeks i decided to go back to the gym. my wife dropped me off on her way to work and i walked home. that didnt last long because although it was only a 40 min walk home , i had to make several stops along the way. in the end i stopped going.
over the next 3yrs i put on 7st 9lb to weigh in at 22st 2lb. im now trying to shift it.... i weigh 21st 8lb at the mo so its going to be along journey.
i think if a person feels comfortable in the skin their in then why worry.
It's ok Steve I do appreciate input, it's just so hard when the normal things I used to do are so difficult now. But, I just started acupuncture this week and am hopeful it will help rebalance me, if not at least I will have tried.
I realise it's up to me, as it always has been, how my recovery long term goes.
My GP has been very supportive and helped where he can but the NHS has its limitations so I will explore whatever wherever.
Good luck on your journey too, little steps with the weight loss are good, I don't worry about mine, I know I will get there eventually.
doing the things you used to be able to...i can relate to that.
what id really like is to go out with my wife and her not to have to worry about an inappropriate comment or action, not to have a tongue as my thought processor.
i ll stop now sorry, i just read what ive read and it might be misconstrued as anger.
hope the acupuncture goes well and for positive comments ,i cant complain about my gp hes been brilliant so was my psychiatrist....but hes left now...so its start all over again!!!
whatever youre doing this weekend have great but safetime,
Steve! ...........only a man can and would dare to tell women " the secret to losing weight is simple"! Oh yeah! :-))
Like many here have said, exercising isn't straightforward either when they are also physical limitations and even bike riding with some balance issues for me is dodgy on a country road that has several farm vehicles and lorries using it. If only I was agile as the cats that belt across it!
My weight loss came because I didn't have decent cooking facilities for 2 years, so wasn't really eating properly. I also wonder how many cant lose weight not because they overeat or eat the wrong things, but simply because their body is not in sync and doesn't have the right balance of hormones/vitamins and minerals etc for their ages now.
The Gov says ut out salt - sea salt used for cooking containers iodine, the body needs iodine.
How many have asked their doctors to blood test for Vit B12, Ferritin and Folate - all necessary also in the correct amounts. If food content as opposed to quantity doesn't provide it, then it should be supplemented preferably herbally/naturally.
How many may also have a thyroid problem and not be aware, doing as I did by putting extra symptoms down to the BI, when it was either over medicated or not enough of the correct nutrients in my system.
sorry this isn't all directed at you Steve, just to everyone in general. Other than my Levothyroxine, for my Thyroid, I won't take other prescribed meds now unless convinced it's 'essential' , so I take the monthly prescribed Vit D3.
Also there is the genetic factor in so many of us!
Hi Janet - yes my enlarged spleen caused my blood cells disorder,which was finally diagnosed just b4 my BI. I just wanted to know what had caused my BI in the beginning, thats why all these months of research.
I haven't deserted Headway, but until I had good and pretty comprehensive research study under my belt, didn't think there was much I could usefully contribute on here.
All probably around the time of my I can't cope anymore post!
I've still never had any help at all for the initial BI effects from family or health system here because the docs have only ever looked at the subsequent health problems - my BI totally ignored!
Eventually the only option I had was to try and help myself!
I have been talking to HW over the months as well, not for BI after effects as much, because I'm pretty confident I know what is here permanently, mostly physical rather than directly linked neurologically with it. I also know how my neurological state changes According to what meds I was given then self stopped. as said in my reply to Cat.
I've also learnt from the Thyroid website what blood tests to ask for which indicate what essential nutrients my body lacks. Also using the sea salt helped stop my night cramps. I just add some to vegetable water when cooking them. It's only if I eat chips, I grind a little sea salt on to them.
I've been encouraged by the Pharmacist here to eat red meat, especially lean red meat, grilling or frying melts any fat out of it, poultry, and fish. He said don't eat Pork - think about where pigs scrabble around for their food! He Didn't mention lamb, and I forgot to ask! I would add that of course my short term memory hasn't improved....I haven't found the secret ingredient for that :-))
Im pleased to see all the familiar names and faces on here again and I must phone Caroline .... Another mem prob!
sambs the last thing on my mind was to tell people how to loose weight mereley of ways that are possible. but like all, as you point out should take medical advice before dieting and exercise to check for any underlying conditions.
no youre quite right to pick me up, and put your advice, because there maybe a new member who wants advice on loosing weight after a bi.
yup i smoke,but eat as well as i can,i eat fish but no meat,and ok yesterday i had choc fudge cake for lunch! Cat donot feel bad you will get back on track and i bet you arenot as sinfull as you think!
I think it was when she put me on the scales and I've gained almost a stone, so panic stations Razy.
But I've been feeling uneasy for a while about eating for convenience rather than health. I know it's partly a problem with troposmia where my taste has become corrupt and most of my favourite foods taste weird or unpleasant..................so it doesn't make for enthusiastic cooking.
I think certain lapses can become habitual...............but it's time to break those habits !
cat3 i eat fairly healthily. my wife went to weight watchers bought the books and magazines so every evening meal is made from scratch.
i used to love pork scratchings 2 bags a night washed down with a few beers.
forget the beer but the scratchings were an extra 7000 cals a week, ive kicked those into touch still have the beers.
weve got scratch made lasagne tonight. one of my favourites is an open pie.......with the lid over the top yummy.
actually thinking about it, i didnt really over indulge over xmas.
going back to your mot, when i go for mine they take about 5 viles of blood from me, my blood pressure pulse. weight a rub then kick me out the door saying see you next year!!! actually its followed up with a docs appointment
I think living alone is the slippery slope Steve ; no one else to please but ones self. It was different when I had the family to feed and was constantly thinking of their welfare and trying to please.
So cooking just for me can seem thankless, but I know I need to put more value on myself and start shaping up in the kitchen !
I do eat loads of fresh veg (even with ready-meals) don't drink or smoke and take cod-liver-oil and vitamins every day, so it's just a matter of getting back to home-made nut roast and fish pie etc., etc....
And, if it ever stops raining................taking long walks !
cat3 sometimes my words are ....cant remember the word im looking for ( doesnt usually happenwhen i type ) but i understand where youre coming from.
the only reason i get my healthy meal a day ,and all 3 at the weekend is because my wife cooks.and i agree with sambs,plus i think alot is also to do with our bi we mean to but then we either forget or its too much effort.
Well done you Cat3 for owning up to it all - very courageous and I like the way you presented it
sadly I can say pretty much the same for myself re the indulgences though I have cut back about 90% on the choc indulgences - but must add plus smoking since Haemorrhage here, something I'd stopped immediately one day with no cravings, over 25 years ago back in UK. Unfortunately, not only before but almost immediately after I left hospital, the urge/smell of cig smoke had hit me out of the blue, not difficult in France considering so many still do here, now I am addicted to it!
I also indulge myself with 1/2 small glasses of Rose wine of an evening. I'm not a daytime drinker unless it's water, English tea, VitC + supplied via mixed fruit juice, or boiled water with fresh lemon slice in it! - they add up to my guilty sins
I'm also interested when you said you had the 'chronic illness' Checkup. I had the same here in December, done by an Area Health Authority Doctor, not my own GP thank goodness, with blood & urine tests also a week prior to seeing her for results. Blood tests I have to have quarterly anyway, but it turned out I had a urine infection I didn't know I had! I had no symptoms at all to indicate I had it. One blood test result earlier last year showed I was autoimmune on the hypothyroid testing (Hashimotos)
The Area doctor said I had Thrombocytopenia! I looked it up in Wikipedia 1st, which led me to several other links - below is quoted from Mayo Clinic website.
"Thrombocytopenia can be inherited or it may be caused by a number of medications or conditions. Whatever the cause, circulating platelets are reduced by one or more of the following processes: trapping of platelets in the spleen, decreased platelet production or increased destruction of platelets."
Is it connected to an SAH or spontaneous aneurysm followed by the haemorrhage - I don't know the answer to that yet, maybe I never will. I do know I developed a swollen spleen after being on Metformine at same time I was taking Levothyroxine, my blood tests, abdominal scan and bone marrow biopsy - all just 3 yrs ago and 3 months before before my BI are provable with the medical test results then.
It's since then my other conditions have also developed and all seem associated, except a private blood test I had done a few weeks ago shows I dont currently have latent or actual TB again. My dad had it twice in his life, 2nd time a few years before he died in '98. I had a TB infected gland removed from my neck when I was a baby.
That gland removal could well have affected the adrenal axis, leading me to a life of recurrent underlying infection. I know I didn't need the TB vaccination at school at school as I proved resistant to the test!
The Adrenal Axis and Metabolic system are connected. As is the loss of Oestragen in women in general as we age. They all cause their own complications. How many of us now are postwar Baby Boomers with thyroid or diabetes problems. More women have thyroid problems than men. Also we are the generation whose fathers fought and were stationed abroad in WW2, contracting all sorts of diseases or conditions.
Thyroid UK and Hypothyroidmum have both picked up on the need for more than just TSH testing because it's the adrenal and Endocrine systems that need better scrutiny.
TUK now place a lot of emphasis on supplementing and making sure we have sufficient of the correct levels of Vitmin B12 in our bodies, along with VitD, especially during winter. My doctor does actually prescribe me D3 monthly. It's a liquid dose better absorbed by the body rather than taking a pill that sits there to be processed by the liver and passed on more slowly via the bloodstream. Meds and infections that don't clear or process well can lead to toxicsosis, which also affects the brain.
So if you are going to start a new regime Cat, have a look at Thyroid UK, it may give you some useful pointers rather than just dieting alone, because your diet sounds pretty healthy just perhaps not supplying all the nutrients via food that your body needs.
I saw yesterday via an email Id received, that black cumin seeds are exceptionally healthy and nutritious, I posted it on TUK and several people came back on the post, to agree, they are also called nigella seeds apparently.
Not really a new regime Shirley ; more a matter of getting back to where I was before taking a dive in November when I decided that ready meals and cake were perfectly acceptable on a daily basis.
A classic case of comfort eating of course, but it ends here.
Hi Steve, I m so sorry I can't say hand on heart whether gluten and dairy intolerance are part of a Thyroid problem or not - some on TUK seem to think so, but I've been a gluten and dairy eating person my whole life and never had IBS symptoms,
I was only diagnosed as hypothyroid in 2000 aged 53, and being Autuimmune (Hashi's) only last year. Given all my health, I'm not convinced for me I have Autoimmunethyroiditis. I know I'm TB immune, but thAt part of my health wasn't in any health records started here for me from 2008. I'd forgotten about the TB as a baby! It wasn't even in my last UK health records. I thought they followed you all your life in UK, seems not then. But the NHS may be starting to do that now - leaving it to the individuals to start their own online NHS health records.
Back to your daughter - Does she have her blood test results in writing, first I'd suggest if she posts results on the Thyroid Community the admins there will give her some guidance on that aspect.
If possible - relative to Thyroid. she needs to ask for blood testing for:-
TSH, FREE T3, FREE T4, Folate, Ferritin and Vitamin B12. Also if she is on medication she needs to tell TUK, what she takes and the dosages.
Blood test results will give a number - the actual value, followed in brackets by a 'range' - she will recognize what she's looking at.
Also hope I'm not teaching my gran to suck eggs here! An early morning fasting blood test is best. No eating at least 4 hours before it anyway, also don't take that days thyroid med, it won't hurt her, she can wait till normal time the next day. Every day it should be taken with a large glass of water and she needs to wait min 30mins, up to 1 hr after taking it before she eats anything.
Sorry I'm working in dark a bit here as you say she is in Saudi but she may be seeing an English, Saudi or other nationality Doctor. The above is what we do in UK and ask to have tested, I insist on same here here with my doc.
Also look up symptoms of being hypothyroid, and what IBS is all about with its symptoms.
For conditions, Wikipedia is a good place to start. I just type the condition into my search engine and up comes Wiki. There are then leads on there to several different other Hon Code or trusted medical websites, that give fuller medically researched and/or proven information. Drugs.com for meds taken and Labtestsonline for lab test results.
Best for your daughter and you all.
Oops the heavens are about to open now - the worst of the weather now arriving from across the Atlantic and the West I guess! barometer was up in the 1020's yesterday - now at 6 pm here down to 1103 mbs.
shirley thankyou unlike here in the uk everythings like a production line..you star at a and end up at a. no waiting except for the results ( a couple of days at the most ) beauty of health insurance !!!
Glad I could help out Steve, let me know how she gets on. Thyroid is normally tested quarterly here - it was only annually when I was I was in U.K oh and also. If her dosage is altered TUK says it takes about 6 weeks for new doseage to really kick in. So if symptoms don't change quicker than that, tell her not to worry :-))
...sadly not Steve - I'm about 40kms and slightly NW of Le Mans.
I hope you have a lovely time in Nice though because OH and I ate lunch or dinner thereabouts - several years before leaving UK - we did a Daily Mail free flights offer and flew to Lyon staying in a gite miles away - my fault I made the bookings and got the distances wrong lol - but we had a lovely day driving along the côté d'azur - taking in Cannes and/or St Tropez/Nice for lunch and dinner that day. I remember the rue d'anglais and the very expensive shop fronts - ah Happy Memories of times gone by
well done for owning up in the first place that's a head start.....
Since I've been on Keppra my taste and eating habits have completely changed I was miss convenience specially biscults .chocolates etc and after getting blood tests done regular my cholesterol was high , tried with diet change for a few months went down slightly but not enough.
Dr suggested statins so stubborn me told him I don't want to take them but told him I had heard about herbal tablets called CHOLESFYTOL so he agreed and has given me till March to see so I'm hoping they work when I get my next blood tests.
Also I take vitamins but they should only be taken short term not long term.
I use a lot of Virgin/vegan coconut oil,flax seeds and koko Dairy free coconut milk which is cholesterol free,lactose free and soya free I don't drink milk anymore only occasionally.No, I am not a vegetarian but generally just eat white meat and then occasionally binge on chocolate like less than an hour ago can't be a bloody angel all the time my halo has to slip now and again.....hahahaha
I Even drink what at first was disgusting ,Kefir, and make smoothies with it and add my coconut oil and flaxseeds and love it now.
I have even cut coffee out I used to drink gallons of the stuff and not forgetting I was smoking up till I was taken ill and I can count on one hand how many I have tried in 3 years and took two/three drags and chucked them so definitely don't miss it!
My taste buds have changed a lot and I can get back into some of my clothes from ages ago and I'm like whoop whoop....
I'm hoping I don't slip back into my quick fixes of food but the way I feel when I eat crap nowdays I don't think it makes me feel ill.
Oh Mandy................you've got a whole lot of living to do haven't you, and you can't do it without a few slip-ups now & again. And how can we measure our good behaviour if there's no bad behaviour to compare it against.
Seriously though, it sounds like you've been making loads of changes for the better ; but I always knew you were a gutsy lady.
When I was in my forties my cholesterol was ridiculously low, but more recently I managed to narrowly avoid the statins only by luck rather than management. Still, it's never too late for improvement.
Keep up the good work Mandy but be sure to keep the essence of who are securely in tact. xxx
I've done a lot of living, now need to change and trying not doing to bad really!!!!
Only saying recently that my past partying has finally caught me out and I'm still slipping up now and again when that devil is telling the angel on my other shoulder.....lol
I've actually tried a successful long low fat diet with regular exercising but eventually hit a blocking point given that my cholesterol is hereditary.
Just been reading through your thread Cat and yes I can own up to a few things. As you all know I had my accident back in May last year and while in hospital my BP was high for the 10 odd days I was in and it stayed high. I had a 24 hour BP monitor fitted in December and it came out high so I'm having bloods and ECG and cholesterol testing this Friday. I eat well and pretty healthy but was having a couple of fried breakfasts a week last year but I train in the gym and run and keep fit but funny because the fried stuff used to make me feel a little breathless and heart palpitations. This year I have cut out all the fried stuff even the bacon sarnies and feel a hole lot better lets hope my heart does too. Roll on Friday and nice to read your post Cat. XX Nick
Well done for cutting out things you obviously enjoyed ; making changes to routines we've had all our lives is a big challenge. But if you're feeling the rewards then it's not such a sacrifice is it.
I've had high blood-pressure since my late 30s and thought it was under control then, when I was admitted with the SAH it was sky high, but after surgery it was quickly moderated with a change of meds.
I hope you'll be pleasantly surprised on Friday Nick ; after such determined efforts you deserve to see some good results !
I pretty much lived on ready meals last year until I fell over and couldn't get up for about 20mins (I live alone). I got plenty of good hospital cooked meals when I was in hospital though even when I was paralysed down my right side! After I had several brain tumours removed in November I quickly recovered until I was readmitted on January the 13th to have another tumour removed on the 14th! I am back home now and although I have become a couch potato eating all the crap under the sun I am managing to make the odd stir fry and today I am going to make a sausage casserole full of peppers, carrots and mushrooms. I doubt the sausages are very healthy but they will at least be tasty
Michael, I think you're doing amazingly well to be coping day to day and cooking for yourself, so soon after your ops.
Nothing wrong with sausage casserole if it's surrounded by fresh veg..................sounds really tasty actually ; can I come round ?
Well done to you for coping with all that's been thrown at you this last couple of months, and I hope that you'll see further improvements in your health and your abilities with every passing week.
I agree Michael that some ready meals are quite acceptable. I've two relatives in their mid eighties and they're both fiercely independent and proud, so microwaveable meals mean they can eat regularly, safely and cheaply.
And, to be fair, although some are just plain nasty, certain ones are nutritional and perfectly healthy.
Keep up the positivity won't you ; we all know how a good attitude can boost recovery.
I'm off to make a prawn chow mien..................but bearing the offer of sausage casserole in mind !
My big one is that I do smoke. I know that's really bad of me and for a while I was smoking a lot more.
Like you taking responsibility for myself I relearned to crochet and that has been a godsend in helping to control it.
For the first time this year I have stopped beating myself up about Christmas. I have made a decision that Christmas starts at the beginning of December and ends at the end of January. Hey my birthday is in there too and celebratory meals have spread over 3 weeks.
Fear not dear Cat. You can and will get back on track. It was just one of those reminders that we need to be more conscious about everything that not bi people.
Never in my entire life have I been slim but I have set myself limits and the neuro approve of that. If I hit a certain weight then everything goes into getting back to my starting point.
As you can see from all the responses you are not alone.
Thanks Random. It's been am eye-opener, and quite refreshing seeing everyone opening up about transgressions & weaknesses. I suppose being fallible just unites us all even more by emphasising our basic humanity.
I have made a start already though, by chucking out cakes (birds can exercise extra ounces off) and cooking proper (and smaller) meals the last few nights.
It's all about getting back into the old routine, but it's been fun talking to everyone about things so common and basic to us all.
I have just come across this post, I love it! I am normal after all! I enjoy the odd M n S ready meal and have just discovered at Xmas that mulled wine(made by my hubby) is the tastiest thing on the planet. Normally if I'm out, which is not often, I would have a gin for the sake of being polite but I could happily cosy up with my hubby every Friday night and slurp his mulled wine....I have to have all the bits in my glass....the bay leaves, lime rind, orange rind, cloves, vanilla pods etc etc.....I could get addicted...but the sugar quantity is ridiculous.....you have all put me in the mood to be very naughty this weekend and drink some more, so I'm off out to buy some red (don't even like wine never mind red) and that is my weekend sorted! Oh what a great bunch you are encouraging me like this!!! Well done to you all for trying to live healthy, I am too but now you have put that in my head there's no hope! Roll on the weekend and me enjoying a few glasses of fruity! (btw I am meeting with a gym coordinator on Saturday to see what exercise I can manage, so all's good!
Thanks Peaches I'd forgotten about this thread. Looking out on a foggy morning and wondering what I should do with the day, think I'll trawl my Nigel Slater cook books then go to testosterone and get required ingredients. Sick of raiding the freezer, I'm sure there's a bottle or 2 of wine in the cupboard too😀
last time I had a check at the vets the nurse filled a form just in case I had to go in hospital again and guess what, they got some things wrong dates of vaccination injury
+ others , and she said they had no record of the injuries I got from the vaccination
so she could not write this down , am back in Thailand now so will try to put this right when I get back in june and get to see nerologist ? so he can inform the practise of my injuries.
well as for eating I would say eat what you want when you want it is easy to cut out excessive sugar, nothing wrong with tomato ketchup as long as you are not drinking a gallon a day If we took any notice of what we should and not eat which I may add changes from week to week the cupboard would be bare,
anyway glad to see you are ok not been on headway for sometime,
last year and part of this were not good been having vaccination related problems, then in july I had appendix out 999 call two doctors could not decide what was wrong with me despite
having all the classical signs,
the doctors in hospital said I only just made it, if you had not dialled 999 when you did
it was most likely curtains for me, was in 7 days also had £80 stolen while I was on the ward . my son got married in Cyprus I did not get an invite no explanation oh well never mind one bonus of PTSD is that things like this do not bother me lack of emotion one of the side effects
my grandson is back at his fathers still having problems there
but despite all this I am reasonably ok while I am here, it is the weather in England I cannot cope with for the most part, sunshine does make a difference for me anyway
I just wish all of you could have the same as me sunshine wise,
Hello again John. Losing your files was pretty convenient for them wasn't it ; all sounds pretty dodgy to me.
Well I hope you're recovered now from the appendix op ; what a scare it must have been (& painful I'm sure ! )
I'm so sorry about the continuing problem with your son ; I'm sure it's a constant source of disappointment & sadness for you. But I hope you and your grandson are still pals ; you were always so close.
Of course it's pretty miserable and cold here in UK so you're definitely in a good place ; I'm so jealous !!
Taking my grandson to the circus tomorrow so hoping the rain might stay away for a few hours so we're not having to trudge through too much mud !
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xxx
(btw I am meeting with a gym coordinator on Saturday to see what exercise I can manage, so all's good! 
August ABI currently in hospitsl& rehabilitation feeling frustrated and isolated
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