“With everything that has happened to you, you can either feel sorry for
yourself or treat what has happened as a gift. Everything is either an
opportunity to grow or an obstacle to keep you from growing. You get to
choose.” Dr. Wayne W Dyer
Hi friends,
The quote today is something I reflect on now and then as a result of my health challenges. I can either sit and say woe is me or I can try and learn things that help me get into better health. I choose the latter.
I have not posted for a few days so I am just popping in to say "hello" and to thank those of you who have been kind enough to visit my blog this month. (
I have been by to visit all of you but if by chance I have missed someone please do let me know). Where does the time go? The month is almost done and a new one beginning!
I have to get some birthday cards for friends and family who celebrate in February so I better get a move on.
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Not a cloud in the sky today. |
The weather here continues to be absolutely lovely. We are blessed with days upon days of sunshine and no rain. That is very unusual for us at this time of the year. I am happy to see the sun and to do without the cold and damp. I only hope it doesn't cause problems in the Spring for the water levels or for the animals. Things that are no longer normal in the weather always seems to affect something else.
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Porridge breakfast with cinnamon, pumpkin seeds and goji berries. |
I had some bad news this week about my blood glucose levels (A1c). They are higher than ever despite all the good work I've been doing to eat healthy and get consistent exercise.
Better stress management and improved sleeping hours are areas I still have to work on. Hopefully the coming weeks and months will see improvement in these areas too.
The good news is I have lost quite a lot of weight; about 2/3 of the weight I gained over the past 3 years. I also lost a couple inches from my waist (more from other areas too but I am really only tracking the waistline due to diabetes). My blood pressure which was starting to creep up is also doing much better and is right in middle of normal. Some things are obviously going in the right direction and most of this is probably attributable to exercise. It is only a matter of time before the blood glucose cooperates.
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My beautiful basket from Ghana. |
Some of you might wonder about the weight gain over the past 3 years. It was because I started having major issues with my knees. It was really very bad for a very long time. My health which was not so good to begin with really took a downturn when I could no longer walk. I've been trying everything possible since then to correct the problems with varying degrees of success. It was only in Spring 2013 when I began to walk more with the aid of
walking poles. Since then I have been out and about more than I had been in the previous few years. I have also been diagnosed with osteo-arthritis and so am needing to shed more pounds to take the stress off the joints. Though my improvements have been slow in coming, I was encouraged by some positive news this week even though I also had bad news regarding my blood glucose levels.
I am back to tracking my blood glucose levels 8 times a day. Every now and then I go through this exercise to see what is affecting me (diet, exercise, etc.). Oh my! I had a bit of a scare. My readings were so high. In a desperate measure to try and lower the reading, I ate some romaine lettuce leaves. It worked. Before bed my readings were actually too low. I had to eat an apple to try and bring the blood glucose reading up a bit. That seemed to work and this morning I was more or less where I was before I went to sleep. I hope today will be less of a roller coaster.
I continue to see the acupuncture doctor and take the herbs he prescribes. Some of those herbs may also be affecting my blood sugar readings so I will keep an eye on that. But I will continue going as I feel that ultimately it is these herbs that will bring me into balance. My primary reason for visiting the acupunture doctor is to deal with the arthritic pain.
Before Christmas I bought the lovely green basket you see in the photo above. It holds some of my yarn. As you can see it isn't nearly big enough for what I've put in it so I will move some of those balls. Believe it or not, it is very hard to find big balls of yarn were I live (I don't get to Wal-Mart) and if you do find them, your colour choices are very limited. Every now and then I find a big ball of yarn and I buy it. I'm building up some colours for making more throws and quilts though I have no specific project in mind.
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I sewed a bunch of these hexagons into strips but when I began to join the strips together they did not lie flat. |
I still haven't finished the African Flower Blanket I started in November. I intended it for a gift and instead I had to buy something. The problem I ran into is how to join the hexagons so they do not bunch up. I do not want to just join the hexagons at their points so I need some time when I am not too busy to figure things out. I will eventually get to it but it will take some time.
My brother and I continue to wait for a room opening at the new facility so we can move my mother. In the meantime, I have a lot to deal with concerning her needs and that keeps me on the go virtually every day. I try to make sure I can still get out and do some things for myself as well as meet up with friends besides just going to doctors and acupuncture. I am back to cooking one night a week and next week we will do a special dinner for Chinese New Year. Soon I will be joining another friend for a class on dressing for your body type. I have not done anything like that in awhile so it should be fun. My reading of novels and the Bible continue though I have cut down on general reading to try and focus more on the Bible. It does not always work out that way. My crafts are also on the back burner for the time being. I am just too busy to do it all and am concentrating on diet, blood glucose monitoring, exercise and rest. Putting some things on hold is necessary to the stress management. Crafting and reading are wonderfully enjoyable and relaxing but only if I am not forcing myself to accomplish something as a result.
I hope wherever you are in the world you are enjoying yourself.