Time for my weekly progress update and I am in awe with how fast a week can pass. When I was younger time seemed to be standing still and now it seems to run full speed ahead. Still I am thankful for every single moment, even the bad ones.

I am back from my mini-trip to Longview Washington. I saw my two amazing friends and I was given a few more assignments for my role as Living Ministries secretary.

Our next big project is the Animal Love Drive we are doing to benefit Angel Wings Ministry and what Angel Wings can’t use will go to CAP. If you would like to donate food or money please do so. It starts on August 1^st and goes for the entire month.

While in Longview my calf still hurt but the second day I was there it stopped hurting. Then I woke up and my left wrist and hand started hurting. I was reminded of 2010 when I had a major flair up. When I was in the hospital for my third throat surgery I had a larynx spasm and aspirated fluids in my lungs and ended up with Pneumonia and I went down to 38 percent oxygen which caused me to hallucinate badly. I was tied to the bed. I thought my wrists hurt because of being tied up and so did the nurses. It wasn’t. I was in flair mode from the disease I have. It was the same wrist, so I couldn’t help but be reminded. It is still swollen, red, warm, and hurts a bit. I have been taken 40MG of Prednisone to help with the pain and inflammation. I called my Rheumatologist in Seattle on Monday to get a new prescription of Prednisone and see what he recommends I do for the flair up. I am still waiting for the phone call. Of course, I will be making doctor appointments this week for the month of August.

As for my weight, well with the extra dosage of Prednisone I was taking 5 MG and now I am up to 40 MG I have gained 14 pounds. I am deeply discouraged by this gain, but I also know this is a side effect of the Prednisone. It was only last week I was 317 and now I am 331 pounds and I know I have not eaten enough to gain that much weight in a few days’ time. This is the perils of taking Prednisone watching my weight go up and down in a matter of days to a week between 20 to 5 lbs. Still I am fighting the battle of my weight and my disease. One thing I did think about while I was in Longview was revamping my nutrition. Something does need to change. I am reading some nutritional books, because I want to eat well for my body. Not just to lose the weight, that would be so awesome, but to fuel and help my body with the inflammation and Vasculitis disease.

I know that I feel a lot better when I eat more vegetables than meat. If I solely eat animal products then I feel yucky. It is a balance.

My caregiver brought me a protein bar called “Pure Organic”. I stay clear of protein bars because well they have a lot of ingredients. “Pure Organic” does not. Ingredients: dates, cashew butter, agave nectar, brown rice protein, almonds, blueberries, apple juice concentrate, lemon juice concentrate, sunflower oil.  I actually love the taste.

The bar is not super sweet and feels more like I am eating something of substance and not a sugar loaded candy bar pretending to be healthy. The best part is there is zero sodium in the bar, yes I said zero. I hope to someday try more of their products.

My goals this week:

When my left arm/wrist is not hurting get back on the treadmill/bicycle and get my body moving. I have talked to my caregiver about walking down to the gym area and work out with me.

Keep cleaning out my environment. I started on my closet. I have a lot of medical supplies that must be organized. I hate having my closet look like a tornado has gone through.

Flip my mattress. Yes, it is time to do this again. Thankfully I have help.

Research recipes for my crockpot and for vegetables so that I can enjoy nutritious meals that will fuel my body and I hope to be able to actually cook them.

Last but not least call my primary doctor and Rheumatologist to set up appointments. I missed my Rheumy doctor’s phone call so I am to email them and see what time I would be available to chat. He called at 8 at night. I was asleep.

Did I accomplish what I wanted last week? In some ways I did. In my weight and eating department I feel like I didn’t. I ate some ice cream with my friends one evening, but we did eat a lot of vegetables and nutritiously dense food. I didn’t eat the full serving I was given of the ice cream. Ice cream is not one of those foods that I crave or can eat a ton of. My thinking is that with every step in a positive direction I make in my eating, moving, relationships, and environment I am doing well. Yes, I gained 14 pounds and I am upset about it. I also realized it is not due to what I ate, it is due to my Prednisone. A healthy person does not gain that much weight in a matter of days. I am reminding myself of this, but still those mind sharks plaque my mind. My thoughts “why am I even bothering eating healthy when I can gain 14 pounds in a couple of days?” I know stinking thinking. This week I will do better and I will keep trucking along on my journey to health… Until next time…