Diagnosis: Grin and Bear It

Well as most of you who read this know, I have not been the healthiest of people for several years now. I have been desperately searching for a reason that I feel so awful most of the time. I had hoped that my surgery in September of 2007 would help me, but alas that was not the case and since my nervous breakdown in October of last year (more on that on a day when I feel like getting into it) things have gotten worse, a lot worse. There have been more than a few days when I didn't see the point in going on. It's hard to admit that, being a proponent of living life to the fullest and all. So.... in summary I finally received a diagnosis last week. I have Fibromyalgia Syndrome (FMS). While having a name for what ails me was comforting, turns out the causes and cures for FMS are unknown and underfunded. Yay. They do know that it is most likely hereditary, and as my mom had Lupus it is no surprise that I was susceptible to it.
I am still learning about the condition myself but have found the Mayo Clinic's website helpful. There are a lot of symptoms associated with the illness and some people have all of them or just a few. These are the ones that I have (from the American Fibromyalgia Syndrome Association):Fatigue - This symptom can be mild in some fibromyalgia patients and yet incapacitating in others. The fatigue has been described as "brain fatigue" in which patients feel totally drained of energy. Many patients depict this situation by saying that they feel as though their arms and legs are tied to concrete blocks, making physical activity more difficult.
Sleep disorder - Most fibromyalgia patients have an associated sleep disorder called the alpha-EEG anomaly. This condition was uncovered in a sleep lab with the aid of a machine that recorded the brain waves of patients during sleep. Researchers found that the majority of fibromyalgia patients could fall asleep without much trouble, but their deep level (or stage 4) sleep was constantly interrupted by bursts of awake-like brain activity. Patients appeared to spend the night with one foot in sleep and the other one out of it.
Sleep lab tests may not be necessary to determine if you have disturbed sleep. If you wake up feeling as though you've just been run over by a Mack truck—what doctors refer to as unrefreshing sleep—it is reasonable for your physician to assume that you have a sleep disorder. Many fibromyalgia patients have been found to have other sleep disorders in addition to the alpha-EEG, such as sleep apnea (as well as the newly discovered form of interrupted breathing called upper airway resistance syndrome, or UARS), bruxism (teeth grinding), periodic limb movement during sleep (jerking of arms and legs), and restless legs syndrome (difficulty sitting still in the evenings).
Dyscognition (or fibro fog) - Patients may describe this brain fogged feeling in a variety of ways, such as difficulty concentrating, disorganized thinking, memory problems, and inability to stay focused or alert. Minor distractions may greatly impair cognitive functions in people with fibromyalgia.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome - Constipation, diarrhea, frequent abdominal pain, abdominal gas, and nausea represent symptoms frequently found in roughly 40 to 70% of fibromyalgia patients. Acid reflux or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) also occurs with the same high frequency.
Chronic headaches - Recurrent migraine or tension-type headaches are seen in about 70% of fibromyalgia patients and can pose a major problem in coping for this patient group.
Add those to :Other Common Symptoms - Premenstrual syndrome and painful periods, chest pain, morning stiffness, numbness and tingling sensations, muscle twitching, irritable bladder, the feeling of swollen extremities, skin sensitivities, dry eyes and mouth, dizziness, and impaired coordination may occur. Fibromyalgia patients are often sensitive to odors, loud noises, bright lights, and sometimes even the medications they are prescribed.

So yeah, no barrel of monkeys. But I have decided that now that I know what is wrong with me, and that there is no quick fix. There are however, things that I can try to do to control the "flare ups". I am going to stick to my yoga routine, try to walk more often and stay away from environmental factors that have been known to cause flare ups, like chemicals,stress (HA!), and anxiety (again, HA!).
I have been put on a mild medication to help with my Generalized Anxiety Disorder so as to hopefully control more of the potential flare ups. I start my highly intensive training program on June 1st. Which will consist of 12 hour work days plus three plus hours a day of homework. So it will be flare up mine field this summer. However, I am determined to not let this get the better of me. I am choosing to try to stay as healthy as I possibly can so that I can follow my heart and fulfill my dreams. I just hope that I don't get in my way too much.

Just another reason to let Bessy and Wilbur live

This article is from The Week Magazine, April 10, 2009 v. 9 issue 407. "Red Meat Will Kill You"
"The more steak, burgers, and bacon you eat, the sooner you'll die, says a new study of more than 500,000 people. Researchers at the National Cancer Institute in Maryland compiled data on the intake of red and processed meats over a 10-year period, then cross-referenced data on deaths over the same decade. They found that both men and women who ate a lot of red meat and processed meats such as hot dogs and bacon were more than 30 percent more likely to die than people who rarely consumed these foods. "You eat a hot dog a week you're going to up, quite a bit, your risk of death in a 10-year period," epidemiologist Barry Popkin tells The Washington Post. Most of the premature deaths were the result of heart disease and cancer. Red meat contains high levels of saturated fat, which pushes up levels of bad cholesterol, and cooking red meat is known to produce carcinogenic compounds. Hot dogs, salami, and other processed meats contain enormous doses of salt and are preserved with nitrates, a known carcinogen. Health experts recommend that you eat red meat no more than once a week, and that you eliminate processed meats from your diet completely."

Finuhh

I guess a year of ignoring my blog is long enough. I just don't think I have much to write about lately since I mostly sit on my butt waiting for June. But since it was requested I shall post the following information:

Sources of Vegetarian Protein:
Eggs
Beans (such as kidney, black, and pinto)
Tofu
Soy milk
Dairy products such as cheese, cottage cheese, milk, yogurt, etc.
numerous protein drinks and supplement options
quinoa
seeds (sunflower, pumpkin)
seaweed
nuts (almonds, cashews, peanuts and of course my personal favorite, peanut butter
some vegetables such as brussel sprouts and potatoes

For more information and a list of helpful sources of complete proteins please visit the veggietable (clever, huh?)

Happy Earth Day!!!

Got this from Low Impact Living Blog, great site to begin with and a great article below:

Well it’s a magical day here on our planet– it’s Earth Day. We hope you are all planning to do some serious celebrating. Perhaps you are going for a hike– or even doing something outstanding like a beach clean up!

But we have to admit that here at Low Impact Living we’re a bit conflicted about Earth Day. It’s excellent that we all take this day to give praise to our planet, of course. But shouldn’t we all be living an “Earth Life”? We’d like to encourage all of us to move from celebrating one day on to embracing a year-around approach to living that gives Mother Nature a big high five of support.

To quote a popular election refrain these days, “Yes we can.” Here are seven things we hope you’ll agree are pretty easy to do on an on-going basis. If we can all integrate these seven simple steps into our “Earth Life” we will really be friends of our favorite planet.

1. Give up bottled water– for good. Drink from a glass at home, take your own reusable jug or bottle to the gym, and encourage your office to get a water filter or a water service. Americans throw out over 40 million plastic bottles each year and over 80% end up in landfills. If everyone on your block stopped using bottled water you could probably cut out 5000 bottles each year.

2. Buy green power from your utility. You can pay a few extra dollars each month and support power generation from renewable, clean sources like wind, water and biomass. Click here to learn more about programs in your area.

3. Eat meat (at least) one fewer day per week. Raising animals for meat (particularly beef) places an incredible strain on our natural resources. According to the Union of Concerned Scientists, one pound of red meat is responsible for 20 times the land use, five times the water use, and three times the greenhouse gas pollution compared with a portion of beans or pasta.

4. Take reusable bags to the grocery store. No more paper or plastic. Just good old canvas. The average American uses over 500 plastic shopping bags a year– but you are not an Average American!

5. Fly one time less each year. Plane travel is one of the greatest sources of carbon emissions (and global warming). Maybe you could drive or take a train to your destination. Or consider planning a vacation closer to home. To learn more about the impacts of flying, click here.

6. Buy less stuff. New products require the destruction of trees, the use of petroleum for plastics, shipping, packaging…our incessant chain of production and consumption chain is one of great threats to the sustainability of our planet. Can you use that sweater another year? Maybe you could swap some furniture items with a friend. Perhaps you can you get something on Craig’s List rather than at Toys-R-Us?

7. Make sure you are recycling as much as possible. You need to know your city’s rules. We’re amazed by the number of people in our city, Los Angeles, who don’t know they can recycle ALL types of plastic and styrofoam. You may be able to recycle more than you think!
http://www.lowimpactliving.com/blog/2008/04/21/celebrate-earth-day-embrace-earth-life/

I am a horrible person

This has been a rough month for me and in order to get everything else done in my life the blog had been put on the back burner.
I promise the 10 days of health with come, just not sure when. Not to make excuses for myself but here is what I have been doing:
-My husband left me in Ohio all alone for AF training in Alabama. He has been gone 2 weeks and will be gone for another 4. This in itself has been VERY hard to deal with, and having the movers come 2 days after he gets back means that getting the house ready to go falls on me, as does everything else. ughhh.
-I have been "sick": having weird heart palpitations. I now have an ultra stylish heart monitor strapped to my side and itchy pads on my chest and have to push a button that makes the device screech like a banshee when I have an "episode". There is a whole mess of issues associated with the logistics of this little thing and I don't want to get into it, I will say that the phone company we use SUCKS!!
-I graduate in about 6 weeks, not sure if I have senioritis or what but I have been slacking majorily with course work, and now feel overwhelmed, which of course doesn't help my heart issues.
-On a plus side I have a wonderful new friend (yes, amazing as it is, Nicole made a friend, all by herself). Sad that I have to leave her after we have grown so close. I am watching her dog for a week while she is in Hawaii, and the cats hate the dog (which is a major understatement) but luckily he does not mind them (or want to make dinner of them).
-I have been chairing a number of panels at school, which are always at the ass crack of dawn, so I am sleepy and cranky the rest of the day.
-Relay for Life was this weekend, I managed to tough it out for 12 hours despite my heart freaking out for most of the night, and I got sunburned and bit by a spider... inside of my shoe... not sure how that happened exactly.

So there it is, my sorry excuses for letting my blog go to poo. I promise that when I start feeling normal again I will be more diligent. Until then, you will just have to wait on the edge of your seat for Nicole's next stimulating post. =)

For the Next 10 Days:

This site will be dedicated to vegetarianism and an organic lifestyle!
I am reading the most fascinating book I have ever laid eyes on (which is saying a lot). It is called Harvest For Hope and was written by one of my personal heroes, Ms. Jane Goodall. Here are some quotes to get the 10 days of veg-o started!

"There are so many, many ways in which we are destroying the planet. And once we understand, once we care, then we have to do something." (xix)
"If we continue to allow the corporate world to control our food supply, we could devour or poison, within the next half century, all the food resources that sustain us." (xxiii)
"It is desperately imortant to cut back on the current greedy consumption of meat that is the norm for many around the world." (104)

Can a Beatle Be Wrong? I Think Not