The Savvy Survivor

Yesterday, I began my fitness journey; I went to Planet Fitness , with my daughter, and spoke to her Personal Trainer. He tried me out on four machines, gauging the weight and reps that felt comfortable for me. All four machines were challenging, but two were a bit easier; I also spent about 20 minutes on a recumbent bike. The sitting crunch machine was one of the machines I worked out on; in order for me to work it, I have to stretch behind myself, to reach the bars behind me. The muscles in my lower abdomen and lumbar region did not appreciate that, one bit! I'm sure it'll get easier, given some time. After our workout, we had some errands to run; one of mine was a trip to the doctor's office; no, I didn't get hurt at the gym, I had an appointment for a checkup. I had some blood work done, the last time I was there, and it was time to discuss the findings. I informed her that I was not taking the Lipitor , and why; two of the side effects scared me. My li...

Look at all those yummy colors! "Eat your vegetables!" Who didn't hear that, growing up? I wish I had kept up the practice of eating vegetables, a couple times a day….I probably wouldn't have breast cancer, if I had! It's not that I disliked them...I just found the food-like substances of the Standard American Diet more tasty, more convenient, and more affordable. My bad!  For the last seven years, I've learned to incorporate lots of different plant foods, every day. Brief PSA, here - Always choose organic fruits, veggies, grains, beans, legumes, nuts and seeds, whenever possible; and eat them raw, but soak them, first! Soaking them reduces the anti-nutrients in them, making them easier to digest, and easier for your body to assimilate nutrients. Wait….let me backtrack here. Some veggies are healthier  cooked  (steam them); and you should always cook beans and legumes. The rest, I encourage you to eat raw. Cruciferous veggies, are great!  L...

On April 30th, I met my new Oncologist....and fired him. Actually, I didn't fire him, I just told him I was tired of doing things the conventional way. I need a break! We talked about what I had in mind to do, as far as alternative modalities, and I asked him if there was any way to monitor my progress without causing me any further anxiety or unwellness. I explained to him, that the last time I had a scan I was physically ill, the entire rest of the day; and my body doesn't seem to want any more Rx drugs. I asked him about monitoring tumor markers, and he told me that since that's not a reliably accurate system, he's reluctant to use it. He said my markers could be down, but if I have any inflammation in my body, they'll show as being elevated, when they're not. He told me the only reliable way to monitor my condition is by way of scans; I can't do those, anymore. I can't lay flat. At the end of our conversation, he said if I need him again, he's ...

My therapist said something, the other day, that turned on an interesting "light bulb" in my brain; I updated her on my current health concerns (recent diagnosis of high cholesterol), and what I had planned to do about it. And she told me that some people can manage just fine, with baby steps, while others need to go cold turkey. And then she asked me if I knew which one of those applied to me. I stopped smoking, over 15 years ago...by going cold turkey. When I lived in Knoxville, TN for a year (back in 2015), I began my vegetarian lifestyle....by going cold turkey. After I recovered from being paralyzed (while living in GA, back in 2016), I notice I started taking baby steps, back to healthy; and my health is getting worse, not better. I'm not good at baby steps. It seems that that particular approach gives me too much leeway, to drift back into old habits; and it's my old habits that are causing all these health issues! I have to be the one who goes cold tu...

I've been battling Stage 4 (metastatic) Breast Cancer for almost seven years; my cancerversary is in July. When I began this battle, I started calling it a journey; I’m in it for the long haul, come walk with me. Except I haven’t been walking the walk I was meant to walk. My journey has turned into the life of a sick woman who still believes she has forever to live. At the rate I’m going, I don’t have much time left...I’ve given myself high cholesterol and high triglycerides, on top of everything else. As it stands these are the things that are going wrong inside my body... breast cancer (terminal) arthritis osteoporosis cataracts high cholesterol/high triglycerides I had to explain my newest medical issue to my two very young grandchildren. It was pretty easy, after I told them that cholesterol is a goopy substance that your body is supposed to have, but I have too much; having too much goop inside of you, is very dangerous. This link will explain things to you, i...

My first blog of 2018!! 🎉 Wow...I am so excited, and feel incredibly blessed,  that I'm still alive! As most of you know, I was diagnosed with Stage 4 Breast Cancer, back in 2012; and, according to medical science, I'm supposed to be dead. For the last 5.5 years, I've been living on borrowed time, but not really...living. For a while I've been plugging myself as "The Savvy Survivor", and I've really tried to live by that persona. Being savvy, while in the care of others, has proven to be very difficult! Most of the time, I still eat what everyone else eats; and, I still struggle with food addictions. No offense to those who love me, but I really wish they'd stop feeding me normal food! I don't want it, but I have trouble saying "no". I've even gained weight, that had previously been shed. This year, I'll have to get a little more assertive with them. I don't want to live with cancer, anymore; and I certainly d...

As we get closer to New Year's Eve, many of us are figuring out our New Year's Resolutions. What do we want to accomplish,  next year? Is there anything about ourselves that we can improve upon? Any goals we'd like to reach? I used to make Resolutions every year, and break them within a few months. Mine weren't just about losing weight, either....I used to set personal, and professional goals, year after year. In fact the last one I made was to never make another New Year's Resolution, again. I learned, about 20 years ago, I'm not good at keeping promises I make to myself; so there was no point in making them, anymore. Here's the ironic part....that one is the only one I've ever kept! If you're going to make a New Year's Resolution, which is essentially a promise to yourself, make sure it's one you know you'll stick to! Stop setting unattainable goals; stop giving up on improving the magnificence that is you! Whatever you want...go g...