Being Healthy...

Whew...I made it through a five week physical whirlwind. On August 4th my body stopped working efficiently. Immediately, I knew there was something wrong, but I had no clue what it was and why it was happening to me. I consider myself pretty darn healthy, that's why this was so strange. Since that day, I've been to some sort of medical facility 12 times, I've had a blood test, a urine test, five x-rays, four ultrasounds, a CT scan with a barium milkshake and an iodine IV. Plus, I was prescribed a variety of pharmaceuticals, none of which I took. I saw three doctors, two specialists, and at least 10 medical assistance. I spoke to a retired kidney specialist, a nurse practitioner, an oncologist and other specialists. In less than two weeks, I had lost nine pounds, had no appetite for two weeks and spent hours staring at the ceiling. But, I made it, and I must say, even if it sounds cliche, I'm better off for it. I am living proof our mind has a lot to do with what happens throughout our bodies. Over these last 35 days I have learned many things about who I am, how I live my life and what I need to do to stay healthy and strong. My body has come back remarkably, but even more importantly my heart has healed. I have finally let go of past hurts and pain in my life. I'd like to go a bit deeper here, but some people couldn't understand or may not believe. Let's just say this...thanks to a number of different entities I am clear, mind and body. It took a few weeks of time alone, inactivity and self awareness to figure out who I am, who I want to be, and how I want to treat people, including myself. I haven't been sick in over 13 years, guess it was the only way I would really truly rest. And rest I did. For the first time in a long time, I couldn't exercise my way out of a challenge. The moral of my story...you can go hard day in and day out, but you MUST take a break once in a while or else, your body and mind will GIVE you a break. Up until now I thought I was healthy and taking great care of myself, the only problem was, I didn't know how to really rest. My first activity was yesterday running in the No Mo Cancer 10K in San Luis Obispo, CA. It was the perfect time and place to return to exercise! I ran the race in honor of my nephew who passed away at age 11 in May of 2013. I want this on the record...I know how to chill out now. I don't want to ever go through that much pain again, and I don't plan on it.