Monday, April 27, 2009

My body says I'm healing

Today I went back and read a few of my previous postings.  As you probably realized before I did, they're a little dry.  OK, really dry.  Some nuggets, but mostly just snapshots.  They read like the notes for a decent article.  Time to try something new.

I'm getting better.  Know how I know?  Because I started noticing my breathing again today.  And how the carpet felt under my feet.  And my posture.  For days now, this body mindfulness has been missing, drowned out by the louder voices of sinus pressure, the tickle in my throat that kept demanding explosive relief, feverish eyes and aches in all my muscles.  I didn't try to get back in touch with my body.  It just happened.  I'm getting better.  Thank God.

I had some wonderful news today.  While seeing the pinch-hitter at my doctor's office about this flu, I asked for the results of some blood work I'd been poked for last week.  All indicators, blissfully, thankfully, are green.  My glucose levels are normal.  My kidney and liver function are normal.  And here's the piece of news with the biggest warm aura around it: my glucose tolerance test is normal.  My actual doctor has apparently reviewed the data and sent me a letter with her conclusions.  So we'll see what her more familiar eyes see in the numbers, but WHEW!  What a relief.

This doesn't mean my lifestyle changes are over.  Not at all.  In fact I'm sure the changes I made during the three weeks or so between diagnosis and being stuck with the needles nudged these numbers in the right direction.  My family history hasn't changed, nor has my conviction to stay purposefully away from diabetes and cardiovascular problems, and get off my hypertension medications.  But I feel so much better, knowing that I hadn't irretrievably damaged my body already.

Life in the garden is thriving.  Mother Dove is happily perched in her nest, nestled into a crook in our Bearss Lime tree.  The tree is thickly branched and covered in thorns.  She picked a great spot to build a safe nest.  I watched a proud papa (or was it doting mother?) Black Phoebe feed it's chick today.  Black Phoebe's are insect catchers.  The hunting Phoebe will perch somewhere with a good view of the surrounding lawn or garden beds, watch carefully, then swoop down and grab an insect out of the air.  The snap of it's closing beak is loud and distinct.  Today the parent and child were out in the yard together.  Dad (or Mom...they look alike to me) would flutter away, snap up an insect, then flit back and pop it into the open mouth of the chick.  Amazing.  And much easier than getting my three-year-old to try a new food.  Maybe if I waited until my own "little chick" was so hungry his mouth opened at the sight of anything edible...no?  Yeah, you're right.

I'll try to get a few pictures of our bird friends and post them here in the next few days.

Food log (which I'm keeping...this is mainly here to help me keep track of what I'm eating):

Breakfast: a cup of granola, plus 1% milk, ground flax seeds and bananas.

Lunch: leftover broiled salmon and quinoa.  That takes care of the last leftovers...we'll have to make that one again SOON.  Oh, and an apple.

Dinner: leftover chicken, beet, romaine and bleu cheese salad.  We made our own honey mustard dressing tonight.  Still working on the recipe...I'll post it when we've got it where we like it.

Snacks: one Robin's Egg, 1tsp cookie dough, a small handful of unsalted cashews

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