GIVING UP WINE = WEIGHT LOSS AND LOWER BLOOD SUGAR!

Kathy in Cartagena, Colombia

Here I am on the wall of the Spanish fortress in Cartagena with a view of the city in the background. And what a beautiful city it is! We had a fantastic time there following our trip to Panama and the Panama Canal.

I've been off all alcohol for 49 days now and it's resulted in my losing 5 pounds so far. Even better, I ate pretty much what I wanted to eat on vacation as well. I came home and went to the laboratory to have blood work drawn. All my blood tests came back great! My blood sugar was only 71! A little on the low side. Guess I'm not going to have to worry about diabetes, or anything else right now. Still, it isn't enough weight loss to keep my joints from hurting so I'm still plugging along. So far so good.

I'M GIVING UP WINE!

Well, so far the new weight loss plan hasn't worked very well. And, I really do need to lose weight. My right hip is grinding and my right knee hurts all the time. I don't want a joint replacement. I don't want to even think about any surgery (unless it's something on the plastic touch-up side, then I might consider it). I've done everything else I can think of. I eat lean meats fruit and vegetables, and I've cut down all my portions. Rex and I split meals when we go out to dinner. Still, I stay at the same weight all the time. My dietary consultant, Jane, told me two years ago that I can't drink wine and lose weight. I didn't believe her, though I think I knew deep down inside that she was right. Now I believe her, so here goes. I'm giving it up in hopes that my joint pains will improve. Wish me luck.

UH-OH. 'TIS THE SEASON TO GAIN WEIGHT!

Here we are again. Thanksgiving week. After we stuff ourselves with turkey and all the trimmings it's on to The Season to be Jolly with all the goodies that go along with that. This is the year I'm finally going to knuckle down and do something about my overinflated body before I need to have all my joints replaced.

I just bought Tory Johnson's book, THE SHIFT and started reading it. It isn't "just another diet book". It's about changing your mindset so you can actually get on with the process of getting healthy. Today I'm focusing on one of the first quotes that jumped out at me, "I'M NOT FAT BY CHANCE. THIS IS A CHOICE. AND IT'S A CHOICE I NO LONGER WISH TO MAKE." I've spent a good amount of time thinking about this one. I really have made major changes over the years in the kinds of food I eat and the choices I make. I've been on every diet plan ever invented. I know the calorie count in everything. I know what works and doesn't work. I've learned I don't do well eating any gluten products so I've cut them out of my diet (well, almost totally-perhaps there's a tiny cheat here and there). Dairy products make me wheeze so I've cut them out as well (okay, except for cheese now and then-I really need a bit of cheese on things-oh, and yogurt-but that's good dairy). I love sugar but I no longer eat candy. Sugar is the worst! (except for the one piece I might grab out of the basket at work, or the one I buy in the checkout stand at Michaels-I deserve a little treat every now and then, don't I?"

And then there's the exercise portion of the whole thing. Today I can't go for a walk because my knee really hurts. My fibromyalgia has been flaring up and my whole body hurts. I can't do the you tube yoga video because I don't have time to write my blog post AND do the video.

I guess you get by now where I'm going with this. I just haven't made THE SHIFT. It starts today. No, this isn't a diet. It's THE SHIFT. For me, THE SHIFT means I'm going to shift to being totally honest with myself about every morsel of food I put in my mouth. No, Kathy, a broken piece of a cookie doesn't mean the calories have escaped. And no, Kathy, YOU DON'T DESERVE IT BECAUSE YOU'VE BEEN SO GOOD! It's time to be good to myself in other ways.

ULCERATIVE COLITIS: TOTAL PROCTOCOLECTOMY WITH ILEOANAL J-POUCH

I'm getting ready to go for my annual flexible sigmoidoscopy for follow-up and it dawned on me that I haven't written about my ulcerative colitis and ultimate surgery for a long time. Most likely that's because I don't think about it much anymore, but perhaps printing my story again will give someone else out there hope.

I started having symptoms of ulcerative colitis in my 20's. I'm 65 now. I would have bouts of cramping and diarrhea and since my grandmother had had ulcerative colitis, it was always in the back of my mind. It wasn't until I began having continual diarrhea and ultimately had bleeding that I was diagnosed with a colonoscopy. That was 20+ years ago. I went through several terribly difficult years while being treated with various medications. When the last medication, 6-mercaptopurine, caused pancreatitis my GI doctor suggested surgery. The surgeon I consulted concurred, and I was scheduled for the above procedure. I arrived for my pre-op only to be told that my surgery had to be cancelled since the surgeon had gone out on an emergency medical leave. He was the only one in Orange County Kaiser Permanente that could do the surgery at that time. It was 1996. I broke down then and there. I was at the end of the line. I had to make 20-30 bathroom trips a day and I was still trying to work the whole while. My husband then intervened and began calling Kaiser. They suggested that I go to San Diego Kaiser to a new surgeon there, Dr. Lynne Weston. We made the appointment and drove to San Diego. She'd memorized my entire medical history and when I got there she told me things I'd forgotten had happened over the years. I had the utmost in confidence in her even though she was a very new surgeon, and I agreed to have her do the surgery. She has since left Kaiser but is still in the San Diego area.

August 14, 1996, my wedding anniversary, I went in for surgery. I won't tell you it was easy. It wasn't. It was a long, painful recovery, but worth every bit of pain because I got my life back. Since then I've become healthier than ever, I work, I'm busy all the time, and we are able to travel the world again. Having surgery was the best decision I ever made. This may be TMI for some, but I still have bowel movements 6-12 times a day based on the foods I eat. Artificial sweeteners, gluten, wine, and a few other foods cause me to have to go more often. BUT I have complete control, so to me this is no big deal.

So, now I'm off to see Dr. Kathy Akashi at Kaiser in Anaheim for my sig. Once you've had the diagnosis of ulcerative colitis, your chances of developing cancer go up every year, so you must be checked often. There's still a tiny bit of colon tissue in there, and usually there are a few little inflamed areas that have to be biopsied, but so far so good.

Art For Healing

             

EXPRESSING FEELINGS WITH COLOR

This two hour workshop teaches you how to express feelings with color using the Art4Healing® method developed by Art and Creativity for Healing, Inc. Founder Laurie Zagon. Participants will process their feelings abstractly on canvas while learning about color, composition, and other elements of art. You will complete 3 canvases in the workshop.

Workshops will be held on:

Sundays from 2:00-4:00 PM

October13

October20

October 27

Introductory offer: $30.00 (usual price for class $50.00)

LIMITED TO 10 PARTICIPANTS

For Registration Call 714-402-8535

Mission Art Center
1730 N. Tustin Street
Orange CA 92865

www.missionartcenter.com

There is a theory that emotional, physical and mental changes seem to occur in our lives in approximate seven-year intervals. I’ve found this to be true in my life. The past seven years have been a time of change and many losses. Because of that, I felt a huge void in my life. I searched for a way to fill that void through various means. I tried several different volunteer opportunities that turned out to not fit me well. I studied Reiki energy healing, which was also not a good fit.  Finally, I decided to take a painting class for relaxation and stress management. It worked well for me but wasn’t quite enough. A friend and I were talking one evening during a social event and discovered that we were taking art classes at the same studio. From then on we frequently talked about our common interest in art as being therapeutic. She discovered Art4Healing first. She would bring it up every time we got together, so finally I decided to take a workshop. I enjoyed the whole process and loved the paintings so much I framed them and hung them in my home. I thought about taking the facilitator training but was concerned that it would turn out to be as disappointing as some of the other activities I’d tried, so I joined the women’s guild instead. After spending seven months being involved with the group, I knew Art4Healing was the place for me. The 7-day intensive workshop turned out best for me and my schedule, so I signed up for the August session.

            I didn’t have great expectations for the course. I thought I’d just be learning the mechanics of how to facilitate workshops. However, my week-long experience was very different from what I expected. The women I was in the class with were vibrant, intelligent, and highly energetic. They’d traveled from all over the United States and Canada, each with the same goal in mind: to help others through art. This really made the atmosphere one of great creativity.

            As the days went by and we tried more and more exercises, I found my energy level growing. I also found that I was thinking about my past and present life much more deeply. I’d thought I’d worked through all my past issues and was surprised when they popped back up to the surface. For me, it wasn’t an uncomfortable experience because I truly have found peace with where my life is now. At the same time it taught me that even though I’d worked through them, the issues are still with me and are what has made me the person I am today. The course has shown me just how helpful art can be in assisting people to express themselves in a non-threatening manner, using color instead of words.

            In addition, I’ve become more conscious of my dreams this past week. I usually have quite vivid dreams, but this week I’ve remembered them when I awaken. They’ve been pretty crazy at times, and definitely colorful. I’m looking at my surroundings with fresh eyes, too. I’m seeing beauty in places I hadn’t noticed before and am looking more closely at everything. 

I HOPE YOU COME TO ONE OF MY WORKSHOPS SO YOU CAN HAVE A SIMILAR EXPERIENCE!                                                               KATHY

 

TEENAGE BOOMERS

     Rex and I have a wonderful group of friends. I just printed out the invitations for our annual Pratt Campout. I came up with the idea 9 years ago when I realized we missed our annual campouts with that group of friends. We started when our children were all small and we would campout at one of the beaches for several days. We all had a wonderful time but as the kids grew up and left home, it fizzled out. One year we rented a house in Newport Beach with two of the couples. The other three couples weren’t able to make it for the whole time. I then decided that since Rex and I have a house big enough for everyone to campout in, and we have a pool, big yard and a patio, we all could camp here. It’s been a great success and in a few short weeks we’re going to do it again. We sit around and eat, drink, laugh, tell tales of the old days, look at photos, and get in and out of the pool. We stay up as late as we like and sleep as late as we want to in the morning. Sunday morning is great as we all sit around the table reading the paper, drinking coffee, then gorging ourselves on a giant breakfast.

     This also got me to thinking about all the other things we do with our friends now that we’re older. We spend three to four days a week either going to dinner, taking dance lessons, going to movies and plays, and anything else we can think of. In the last few weeks, we’ve gone on a gondola ride through Naples in Long Beach, taken a dance lesson, gone to the Art-A-Fair in Laguna Beach, and visited many restaurants. We call each other on the spur of the moment. “Do you want to meet for dinner?” “I’ve got tickets to a play, do you want to go?”

     Rex and I were talking on the way home from an evening with our friends last night and I said, “You know, I just realized that the way our life is now is like we’re teenagers again. Our responsibilities are few, and we spend most of our time playing. The best part is, now we have money to play with!”

     I’m really enjoying this time of life.

BOOMERS IN FULLERTON

6 of us boomers went to the Fullerton DanceSport tonight for a dance lesson to celebrate Darlene's birthday. The dance lesson was PASO DOBLE. Okay, for all of you out there that watch Dancing With The Stars, you know that the PASO DOBLE is not a beginner's class. Especially if the rest of the class has already been taking it for several weeks. So...Tom, Tom and Kathy bailed and went to the closest bar. Darlene, Amy and Rex were good sports and took the dance lesson. Then we all walked to Rutabegorz to have dinner. The rest of the evening was great. Dinner was great. My only question is..."What the hell are Tom and Amy doing?"