After going through menopause, surviving the hot flashes and night sweats, I thought I was in the clear, even though I did put on a little extra weight, which I never had to worry about before. Peri-menopause had caused all kinds of new health problems, or at least brought them to light and I was glad to be done with some of them. I developed allergies and was being treated for those when I was told my blood pressure was too high. Now, I have never had a problem with blood pressure, in fact, it's always been on the low side.
The first medication worked, but the side effects were not acceptable to me, so my doctor found another that was better. Having taken Prevacid for acid reflux for six years, and being on allergy meds for over a year, I was just tired of taking prescription medication, so at my next blood pressure check up with my family doctor, I told her how fed up I was.
She stopped writing in my file, put her pen down, and looked at me with an odd smile. She said, "Well, you can try what I did."
It seems the same thing happened to her as she got older and was needing the same medications and more. She adopted a vegan diet and is now off all medication. I was intrigued and asked her all kinds of questions. I decided that I could do anything if it meant getting off meds.
I am now 10 weeks into my vegan lifestyle change and couldn't be happier. I've lost 14 pounds and am now off both my blood pressure and acid reflux medications. Makes you think about the stuff we put in our bodies! I can honestly say I haven't missed meat, cheese, eggs, butter, or milk at all. There are really lots of food options out there. Now, if only restaurants would catch up!
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Monday, June 22, 2009
Back to school at 50?
Sometimes I wonder what I'm thinking. I have two more years and then I can retire from public school education. Someone much wiser than I once said that you shouldn't retire 'from' something, but rather 'to' something. That was really my plan all along; I just didn't think it would be going back to school for a Ph.D.
My husband was a little surprised, not because of the academic pursuits, but because all I've talked about forever was how excited I was to be nearing the time when I could write full-time. You see, I'm an aspiring novelist and have been dabbling for many years with the excuse that I never had the time to do it seriously.
I've considered earning my Ph.D. for about 25 years now, but the time was just never right. Raising two marvelous kids and working full-time, while trying to maintain several hobbies, seemed to be enough. And it was, until now.
So, the title of this blog came from my strange life path, one that has me heading back to school at 50 years old and almost retired. Wish me luck, because I still have to take the GRE. Please keep in mind that I haven't taken a math class since 1976. This should be interesting!
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