Well, the "fight" has officially begun. The fight to get back down to my "fighting weight", that is. It wasn't just about Caitlin's upcoming wedding, however, I must admit that I did not want people commenting on how wide my behind had become while walking down the aisle. It was more about getting back on track after a rough summer's end.
After finding out that I had contracted that darn ringworm, I had to be put on the most awful medicine ever. It was a VERY expensive pill which not only required a blood test every other week to make sure my liver was not getting damaged, but the side effects were not very pleasant either. I am that person who always reads the information the pharmacy puts in your bag concerning possible side effects of the medication. Finding out that this particular medication frequently caused tiredness, dizziness and stomach upset, not to mention the possibility of liver damage made me pretty apprehensive about taking it at all. And if it had been any other condition other than the ringworm in my head, I most likely would not have taken it. But HEY!...What's a girl to do? I had a wedding coming up and was already missing a plug of hair...I didn't want to be completely bald by the time my daughter walked down the aisle. UGH...Depression began to set in. While I was on this medication for 6 WEEKS, I progressively felt worse and worse; just not up to my old self. The day I completed the treatment, I was elated that it was over. My hair had not yet begun to grow back yet, but I was off of the medication, my ringworm was gone and I would hopefully begin to feel better soon. THAT'S when it HIT!
About the time I finished my ringworm treatment, I began having some issues with my asthma (crap...just what I needed). Deciding to pick myself up off of the couch, I made an appointment with my asthma specialist. I prepared myself for the visit because although he is a friend of ours, I knew that I had been what medical professionals call, "non-compliant"(IMAGINE THAT...). Well, I took the approach of just coming clean from the beginning; admitting one has a problem is the first step to recovery, right? As he walked into the room, his face had a "Shame on You" look. I immediately said, "I know...I know! I got off my inhaler and I know I shouldn't have and I'm sorry..." He opened my file and asked if I knew how long it had been since he had actually "seen" me in his office. Hmmm...I wondered if this was some sort of trick question. Actually it was a rhetorical one because he answered it for me. He informed me that it had been 3 YEARS! YIKES! Could I just crawl under the examination table now?! He referred to me as a "Drive-By Patient". If I felt a little under the weather, I would just call the office and ask what I could take, promise to come in later (to get what I wanted...), start feeling better and then...you've got it, never come into the office. I apologized, got fixed up with new inhalers and headed home. This would be my "New Beginning"; I would start feeling better and THEN I would embark on getting back into shape.
It took a little longer than I had planned to actually put my plan into action; about 3 EXTRA WEEKS, to be exact! You see, I refused to take a steroid (those pills just make me plain mean...I don't even like myself when I'm taking them...) for my asthma and it took that long for the inhalers to begin working again. OH...And did I fail to mention that all this time I had just been lazing around? YEAH...REAL smart, huh?! About the time the inhalers kicked in is when I decided to go see that hormone specialist about the Biodentical Hormones. He did 3 PAGES worth of blood work on me and apparently my healthy lifestyle (up unto this point, that is...), had served me well. The only problem he could see was that my thyroid was working very hard to be efficient. That worried me and I told him so. He told me not to be because it looked at though the cause of it was an iodine deficiency. He instructed me to take 2 capsules of Kelp (a natural source of iodine) per day for the next 6 weeks (until my follow-up blood test). He also told me to begin taking Vitamin C, D and Fish Oil. This doctor spent over 2 HOURS with me that day! I can honestly say that NO doctor has EVER spent that kind of time talking to me about my health. He also decided that I should be on 2 biodentical hormone creams daily (testosterone and progesterone; compounded specifically for ME...) for those deficiencies. The only part of the visit that I did not enjoy was being weighed in. It seems that in my "Couch Potato" state, I had put on 10 POUNDS since my last yearly exam which was only 8 months earlier! Can I just say, "CRAP"?! I was SO mad at myself! So, sitting before that doctor, when asked what I would "like" my weight to be, I told him 20 POUNDS lighter! He peered at me over the top of his glasses as he calmly asked, "Why?" I merely stated, "Well, if we're 'wishing', I think we should just GO FOR IT!" He nodded and made a note in my chart. I left his office that day, feeling armed with all of the information and medication needed to put me back on the right path of getting back into shape; returning to my "fighting weight'!
When I returned home, I IMMEDIATELY began to formulate a "plan" and I am happy to say that after 2 1/2 weeks, I have lost 8 of the "original" 10 pounds I had gained! Want to know HOW I did it?! Tune in tomorrow for my "plan". I promise you it is NOT difficult or extreme and I believe that ANYONE can follow it!
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