As far as busy goes, I'm finding that part of the busy is just getting used to all the juicing prep and cleanup. I've chosen to do all the next day's juicing at once, rather than juice and drink right then and there. Seems juicing on the fly would be a lot more cleanup, whereas simply rinsing certain parts of the juicer before the next batch makes more sense when it comes to time-management. I'm also not 100% yet, so this will get better as "I" get better. Which brings me to an important point I never really cleared up from the get-go... where I was/am coming from, and the "other me."
NOTE: Understand that this is long, but it's the real "why" as to my reasons for juicing, and for taking my health into my own hands. The 'fast forward' sections are my attempts at trying to make this long story as short as possible, while still getting the facts in.
My health a few years back was pretty good, and growing up I was in fabulous shape, pretty much living the lifestyle of an athlete. I taught dance, performed dance (bellydance), and I spent pretty much most of my life involved in some form of dance. I also was an avid gym-goer and hit the weights and cardio pretty hard. Fast-forward.. then one day about 12 years ago I couldn't do it anymore. ANY of it. My gym sessions shrunk in time/duration. I had to go lighter and lighter on the weights, and I left the gym pale, cold, and so tired that I had to go home and take a 3 hour nap. My once 3 hour dance practices shrunk to that final practice that barely lasted 20 minutes before I crumpled to the floor and cried. I knew it would be the last time I would dance.
My fatigue grew, as did my weight. I became weaker, sluggish, you name it. I tried diets, supplements, and I just finally gave up when nothing worked or made things better. No health insurance meant spending money on doctors that I didn't have, doctors that didn't help. Bare minimum of tests, and no answers. In a year's time I gained 100 lbs.
I gained one hundred pounds in about one year!
Fast forward...I eventually got a handle on things and used Weight Watchers and lost all of the weight. But I never felt right, never got my energy back, and never felt good. I mean, how could someone lose that much weight and not feel like a million bucks? More doctors, no answers, same ole same ole.
Life blew up and bad things happened and I began to feel even worse, energy crashing out of nowhere, feeling sick, etc. The heart arrhythmia I had since I was a young girl was getting worse, but no doctor, even at the 'cheap clinic' I was going to would help. Cardiologist, a young, arrogant one who was unwilling to look into things thoroughly, shrugged me off and sent me on my way, missed something critical. Very critical...
In January 2013 I went to the ER with chest pains, hospitalized for tests, underwent a heart cath after failing a stress test. The plumbing looked fine, they said. Meaning, no blockages. They mentioned 'electrical,' but no one was willing to help with that, and I couldn't afford to pursue it because I was alone, no health insurance, and my income couldn't afford the cost of seeing an electrophysiologist, much less the study to find out about my arrhythmia and why it was worse.
I have Mitral Valve prolapse with moderate regurgitation. I've had Supraventricular Tachacardia (SVT) my whole life, but if they told my mother that's what it was called.. no one EVER told me that's what it was called. No one told me I should have gone to the ER when my heart raced for more than 15 minutes (mine would go as long as one HOUR at 155-250+ BPM). No one told me that was dangerous and that I should have my heart "cardioverted" to get it back into normal sinus rhythm.
After being released from the hospital in January, not sure exactly what date, my heart started racing again while standing in line at the grocery store. I tried to count the beats, but this time it was far too fast for me to do so. I'm guessing this was between 25-300 BPM. It converted on its own after about 30 minutes. These episodes had gotten worse over the months, maybe the last couple of years, and they lasted longer, and they caused pain. This particular episode was no exception. But I went home and went about my business.
Over time I began to have dizzy spells that I thought might be from my doing too much, because I had been taking all the overtime at work I could get, which meant I had 3 months of no days off. My job was EXTREMELY stressful as well, and I was up very very late most nights talking to my boyfriend at the time and not getting much sleep. My relationship with him was very rocky, to say the least, and I spent a lot of time crying, on edge, miserable, you name it. I was stressed to the max almost 24/7.
April 23, 2013... just 3 months after I was hospitalized with chest pain. I woke up that morning with severe dizziness. I went to give my ferrets treats that morning and looked at my hand and didn't recognize what I was holding. After a moment I thought I was holding my vitamins, then I realized I had my ferrets' treats... it was unsettling to say the least. I called in to work and thought maybe I was just overworked and needed a day to rest.
The dizzy spells came and went that day, as did the odd confusion.
Approximately 10:30 pm that evening as I was watching a movie another dizzy spell hit. And by "hit" I mean, it came on with the force of a mack truck going 80 MPH hitting a brick wall. The room rocked (not quite spun), my heart began racing like crazy, I was violently sick, shaking. I didn't know what to do but sit there and wonder what was happening to me. I think I cried out, but I don't know for sure. I think I did, though. My thought was that I was having a stroke. But the nausea made me wonder about my heart. I just didn't know. All I did know was that 'something slammed into me.'
I knew my phone was next to me on the table, but it took me a minute to get to it.
Fast forward... I was hospitalized and diagnosed with a TIA, Transient Ischemic Attack, or "mini stroke." By the time I was released, after all the tests, etc, five days later, they still didn't know "why."
"Stress triggers..." They said. And they were right. But only partially so.
Fast forward... I now have health insurance, thank God! In 2014 I found out that I not only have Supra-ventricular Tachycardia, but I also have Atrial Fibrillation and Atrial Flutter! The reason I underlined the last two is that they are responsible for stroke!!!!! And I was EXTREMELY lucky to not have had a full-blown, massive ischemic stroke, according to my cardiologist, as well as statistics. My best friend is paralyzed on one side of her body and lives in a assisted living facility with her elderly mom because her AFib caused a massive stroke so big that it almost killed her.
I will be on a blood thinner the rest of my life, and thankfully not on one that is affected by eating greens! lol But my point is this: You have to take care of YOURSELF!!!!
Be your own advocate, do your own research, arm yourself with knowledge! And NEVER let any doctor make you feel like you're crazy for knowing your body and knowing when something is wrong! That could be VERY dangerous.
I felt it when my heart wasn't acting right. I knew my body well enough to know something wasn't right.
I had a nurse practitioner tell me that my chest pains (CAUSED BY AFIB and Atrial Flutter!!) were all in my head! No joke! She told me that I wasn't really feeling these 'palpitations' and that I was most likely imagining it because I was overly sensitive about it.
She said, "You're doing all this reading and research online and it's causing you to think you're having these symptoms." She was telling me I was a hypochondriac. She would tell me this every time I went there for a test or whatever.
After I obtained health care I was put on a 30 day event monitor by my new cardiologist (my first REAL cardiologist), and it took 10 days for them to catch the AFib! When I went into his office he showed me the EKG strips and told me what it was, then told me I would have to be on 2 different types of heart medications, and a blood thinner (that I would be on for the rest of my life due to the TIA and the presence of AFib).
I sat there looking at the computer screen as said, "So I'm not crazy?" And he laughed and said, "No! You're not crazy. You have a very dangerous situation here," and went on to tell me this was causing blood pressure spikes, and that I was at a dangerous risk for stroke and heart attack...
I sat there and cried. I cried because, for once... someone believed me.
Fast forward... the medication for my 3 heart arrhythmias weren't working to manage the symptoms, etc., so my cardiologist referred me to an electrophysiologist in Birmingham, AL for EP study and radio frequency cardiac ablation(s). This was near the end of July, 2014. He had to burn a lot of the inside of my heart due to there being 3 arrhythmias to correct and pierce the septum in order to reach the pulmonary vein (where they cauterize for AFib), but it was worth it. So far so good. :) Takes about a year to know how successful ablation is, but I'm confident that is was a great success.
Back to juicing...
Juicing isn't a magic bullet. But it is a major step in helping you get healthy and take control where you have it. Because...you may have a wonderful doctor. Or you may not. Do what you can on your own (duh! lol).
My cardiologist has made a career move and is no longer in this state, but my current one is okay. My current GP is rather lazy, so... I have to do this in order to take control over my health. Because I can't wait and let someone who's not invested in helping me get well to have control of the reigns. It's up to me. And once I have enough energy and vitality back, then I'm full-on looking for a better doctor who will be on board and plugged-in when it comes to his patients.
Whew! Well... was that making up for a few days missed or what?!
I'm tired now. ;p
Noodles! Off to drink some juice!
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