Health

I have been on an insane whirlwind of crazy when it comes to this body I inhabit.  For most of my life I was a lower energy person, but other than that I enjoyed great health.  I played soccer in adolescence, hiked great distances in my 30’s, and pretty much enjoyed life not really ever giving much thought to my health until one day when everything went sideways.

I went through about three years of colon spasms and got diagnosed with IBS-D which is a catch all phrase doctors use when they have no idea what is wrong with you, but your symptoms fit into a bucket of other people with similar symptoms that they also have no idea what is wrong with them.  I went to doctors, stopped eating certain foods, and got on probiotics and the spasms went away, but the Russian roulette with food stayed.  Every time I would eat I would never know if I was going to be sick, lethargic, bloated to the point that it hurt to walk, etc.  This has pretty much continued until just recently, but I have so much more to tell about the crazy things this body has put me though.

Out of the blue one day I started having blood in my urine.  If you look that up, you will find per the internet that you should start making your final arrangements. 🤯. I went to see doctors, had tests done, had invasive and embarrassing procedures done and all anyone could tell me was there was no answer.  Approximately one year later the blood simply disappeared.  The next year would bring a new harrowing experience in the name of vertigo attacks, at least that is what I call them because I feel attacked.  All of a sudden everything goes upside down and starts spinning and I am brought to the floor, unable to move, with my forehead on the ground and trying desperately not to vomit.  These episodes which is what the medical community calls them can last a while and leave a horrific wake that can last for days.  I again went to the doctor, had all kinds of tests done checking every possible culprit with yet again no answer.  The ultrasound tech who was checking my carotid artery said something along the lines of your thyroid looks weird, but other than that there was no answer.  (Thyroid tests have been normal and continue to be normal). I now carry anti-vertigo medication with me at all times.  Even when I have an attack, it takes approximately one hour to recover my ability to function and the aftermath of extreme lethargy and brain fog can last upwards of four days.  I was having one vertigo episode a week that year.  It was a tough year to say the least.  But again, the vertigo attacks just disappeared about one year after they started.  A lot of things started to return to normal and I thought well, maybe I am out of whatever that was…. Only to be hit with the worst  of them all!  Winter came, well not winter, fall, really.  But it might as well have been winter because I could not tolerate the cold.  Even 60 degrees was killing me.  It wasn’t a bone chilling cold, it was a soul killing cold I felt and I could not function at all.  I was in pain.  Physical pain, emotional pain, spiritual pain.  I became super depressed and even suicidal.  I had never been through something like this before.  I used to hike in 20 degree weather.  Now I cannot be outside in 60 degree weather.  I wondered if I was experiencing some sort of Seasonal Affective Disorder out of the blue.  Just when I thought I couldn’t hang on much longer, we had an early spring.  The sun was out more and the weather was warming up and this time the 60 Degrees felt wonderful.  As the temperature rose so did everything else in me.  I began to feel good again until it was too hot outside.  I literally spent the entire summer indoors.  I could’t take the heat this year.  I was lethargic all summer and guess what has been trying to return?  My vertigo attacks.  I have only had one full attack, but I have also had like 50 instances of feeling one try to come on, but it didn’t.

What also doesn’t help is that during the middle of this mayhem I gained over 30 pounds and had trouble doing things I normally did without any issues.  Despite all of this insanity I was in the gym working out and doing what I could, but the weight just kept coming.  It got to the point that I hated the gym because of all the damn mirrors. I hated what I looked like.  I didn’t recognize myself anymore and I decided to just quit.  Nothing I did mattered anyway, right?  So I just did yoga and little walks and dealt with the above medical mysteries until this past summer.  This past summer was the summer I stayed inside because I found that this year’s crazy issue was not being able to tolerate cold or heat.  Being stuck inside, not being able to play golf, or go on hikes, or do anything I enjoy really started to get to me.  My body was weaker than ever because I was doing nothing for it.  I was a fraction of who I used to be.

I’m trying to remember how this desire arose in me to get some of my strength back but I honestly don’t recall.  I know I was watching NWSL games on TV and reliving some of my past life wondering how the hell I ever played flank midfielder while watching Alyssa Thompson fly from one end of the field to the other even though she’s not a midfielder she certainly seems to come out of nowhere sometimes. I also had listened to a podcast from Dave Asprey about a guy named Jason who trains celebrities out of his own studio in Los Angeles.  Jason was the guest, I guess and I enjoyed that particular episode.  It left me wanting to know more about this Jason guy.  So I started looking him up. I found out about his studio, the celebs he has trained, his protein powder that he sells to the masses and a workout program he put on the PlayBook App that is similar to how he trained Brie Larson for her role as Captain Marvel.

And then he blocked me. Interesting thing was I was going to cancel my order of his protein powder and nix trying his workouts when God very sternly told me, “Don’t let him deter you.  I brought you to him for a reason”.  And by getting the protein powder and doing the workout program, I did indeed find out the reason.

First, I was getting fed up with not being able to do anything anymore.  I decided I needed my strength back and that I would focus on tstrength and leave the mirror alone.  I committed to doing his program even though I didn’t have all of the equipment.  I know enough to figure out how to do some of his exercises with the equipment I do have and I did the whole program at my house.  I can honestly say his workouts are very sneaky and very effective.  I am doing things I didn’t think I would ever do again thanks to this program.  I can also say I am hooked and back into strength training again.  The amount of change that took place in a four week program is just nuts. No wonder he is who all of the celebrities go to!  Jason, if you are reading this - please put another program or two up for us who can’t train with you!  I know we are supposed to circle back through the program adjusting weight and moving from modified exercises up to advanced versions. I do.  But why not drop a couple more programs?  Just saying.

The second thing that God was talking about was the protein powder!  It’s plant based with a full amino acid profile and contains digestive enzymes and it actually tastes really good.  This protein powder has done for me what I cannot seem to do for myself.  I am a teapot always going off.  I am highly emotional thanks to my Aries moon and my sun is Taurus so I have double the spice and double the nice.  This protein powder calms me!  Like I’m not as volatile as I used to be and I am not sure why.  The other thing it does for me is it has really helped with my daily bloating and I haven’t had as many issues with food since I started taking it.  I even got a bottle of the digestive enzyme blend it contains to have at night because I noticed by dinner time I was having some issues again with food.  How crazy is it that a protein powder fixed an issue I was seeing doctors for for years?  Maybe my issue is I lack some digestive enzymes.  Still I don’t know why it calms me, like it does and so I don’t want to ever be without it now.

Anywho, I credit Jason Walsh for getting me back into strength training and helping to pull me out of the desperation I was in even though I’ve never met the guy and he blocked me on social media.  Jason may have made this protein powder (Rise311) for his clients, but I think God had other plans for it and one of those plans was me as it is seemingly Jessica Proof.

So what’s next for me?  Well, I am definitely going to continue working out and keep up the strength training despite what comes my way next.  I plan on doing Jason’s Brie Program again in a couple of months after I do a couple of other ones.  I am worried about this coming winter because I don’t know if there will be a repeat of last year, but I am trying to just take each day as it comes and enjoy some of my new found strength.  I honestly spent all summer trying to get back to a more moderate climate and it is just not happening right now.  I am where I am and I guess for a reason.

It’s funny that we never think about our health until something life altering happens. I am trying to be more proactive these days.  My mental, emotional, spiritual, and physical health is important and I am paying more attention to it and moving stuff around in my life as needed.


What about you?