Health

A Whole New Life Adventure

January 28, 2021

It’s not often I share a lot of personal stuff on here, but I think this journey makes sense to share and update on when necessary. Not only will it help me to share my experience with others, but by sharing it may also help others looking for information as well.

I am nearly in my mid-thirties now and I’ve been working tirelessly for over a decade to improve my health.

I’ve suffered from digestion and weight issues for most of my life and have made significant improvements in my diet by eliminating dairy and gluten from my life. After having three kids, all c-sections, my body has suffered a lot of setback in being able to lose weight in my mid-section. I’ve also been having a lot of other issues that I recently realized were related to my use of hormones in birth control. Those issues are of a personal nature but let’s just say my body has been suffering.

For nearly 20 years, I’ve been on some form of hormone laden birth control, with the exception of a few breaks where we were trying to and having children. But after a lot of research and self-reflection, it’s dawned on me how badly these hormones have been impacting my body and driving my health in negative directions.

Which brings us to the point of this article.

NO MORE

It’s Time For Change

My husband and I discussed and talked through it and for the sake of my long-term health, it’s time to get off the birth control. I know I have a lot of challenges I’ll be facing in the coming months of transition… But this is an important decision for my own health that I know I need to do. In just a few weeks I’ll take my last one and start the new journey I’ve decided to take.

With a lot of research I decided on a natural tracking program, Natural Cycles, which will help me stay in tune with my body’s behavior and understanding important times of the month to manage not getting pregnant. This was the biggest concern for me, aside from my health, as we are not planning any more children.

With three young ones already running around, we know it isn’t something we want to do right now. Finding a natural way to track my own cycles will help us in preventing any surprises – at least to the best of our ability.

Other fears I have surround if I do get pregnant and how healthy of a pregnancy I will have. During all three of my prior pregnancies I had small hemorrhages on my uterus that caused addition strain and stress on myself and my babies. As each pregnancy went along those hemorrhage (tears) got slightly bigger. I have a very serious fear of having a bad pregnancy. Plus I just don’t want to go through yet another major c-section surgery.

These are all my fears but I’m facing them with a very new perspective that’s driver by my need to correct and improve my health that is suffering right now while taking these hormones.

I’m really excited for this journey and I hope some of you will follow along with me as it’s kind of scary too!

Have you gone through anything like this before? What were some of the questions or challenges you ran into?

Fighting Food Issues and Finding a Healthy Weight

November 28, 2020

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I’ve made it a point for a long time not to incorporate much of my personal life on here, but the longer that I’ve gone on, I think it’s imperative not only to share my journeys and challenges, but to share with others who might be experiencing similar issues.

Thin has never been a word in my vocabulary and I’ve struggled with weight issues my entire life. Especially after having three kids which were all C-Sections. Eventually I had to accept the fact that my body was now very different than before and it was going to be a long road to getting my stomach back in shape.

It’s been almost three years since I had my last child and I’ve been a bit lazy at getting back into my workout routines and health focus. On top of having a few foods that I don’t tolerate well and that I’ve been working on these issues for the last decade. Struggling with gluten and dairy intolerances has made my life a lot more challenging, but incredibly rewarding at the same time.

My daughter has many of the same food challenges and my sons both have variations as well. So it’s been a family sized kitchen overhaul for a few years now. But I’ve got my diet back in check, I’ve been feeling better again and my plan after Thanksgiving is to get back into my regular workout routine.

It’s never an easy thing to do, but I’ve gotten better over the years of getting myself focused when it’s time to do so. For the last few weeks I’ve been preparing my body with refining my food adjustments again to a specific Keto focused diet. It’s important to remember that there’s nothing wrong with you just because you might suffer from food intolerances. The best course of action is to acknowledge the existence of the issues, determine the best course of action for you, and then take baby steps towards o=overcoming any hurdles.

I find it’s easier to make my adjustments if I do them in stages:

1. Adjust my diet

I already know my body pretty well and what does and doesn’t work for me. I can tell when my body starts to feel sluggish or burdened from taking in too many things that don’t suit me well. When I start feeling this way, I make it a point to focus on what I’ve been taking in too much of and addressing those things first by removing them or reducing them. By doing this first, it allows my body to go through the fluctuations and adjustment periods. I do this for a few weeks so that if I get headaches or feel lethargic I can deal with those issues before incorporating my workout routine.

2. Add in workout routine

After my body and mind have had a few weeks to adjust and regulate after some major food changes – like carb reduction and sugar reduction – then I am ready to start my workout routine.

Next Week I’ll share with you the workout program I love the most and have been using off and on for a long time. I am by no means a regular gym bunny, nor am I very good at working out regularly. But I do think it’s important to have a mind set and expectation of how you will work out. Not all of us are built to work out every single day for an hour.

I’ve fallen under that misleading banner too many times and I will tell you that not every body is meant or designed to be put under grueling work out routines. I am pretty well in tune with my body’s physical activity needs and I make it a point , when I need the physical exercise, to work out for 45 min three times a week for a few weeks to really help my body feel enlivened.

Summary

No two people will ever be the same and we all need l have unique challenges that we face. This is just an overview of some of the things I have struggled through and what has worked well for me. Below I’m going to share a few of my favorite snacks and meal sides for those that are dairy and gluten intolerant or sensitive.

Take the very best care of yourselves and let me know in the comments below if you have any recommendations or want to share your experiences as well.

Favorite GF & Vegan Snacks / Meals

Book Review: Blind the Eyes by K.A. Wiggins #Review @adventurenlit @kaie.space @snowmelt&stumps #blindtheeyes #yahorror #monstersandmagic

July 7, 2018

Title: Blind the Eyes

Author: K.A. Wiggins

Release: June 1st, 2018

Publisher: Snowmelt & Stumps

Links: Amazon | Goodreads | K.A. Wiggins – Author

Synopsis:

In a world where hope kills and dreams are deadly, obedience is the only way to survive. But when one girl learns her society’s absolute control and guarantee of safety are both illusions, she risks her hard-won status, her home and her life to rebel and expose its lies.

When haunted teen Cole discovers the state’s guarantee of safety from the nightmarish Mara in exchange for obedience is a fraud, she realizes hers isn’t the only life at stake. Cole needs allies to help her escape execution by nightmare and expose the lies. Now, with a ghost at her back, enforcers in pursuit, and a charismatic rebel leader gaslighting her, Cole must figure out who to trust to bring down the state and stop the dying before the nightmares eat her alive.

A YA dark fantasy about identity, trauma & taking back your choices. Ghosts and world-monsters in post-eco-disaster Vancouver.

My Review:

To start off – I had no idea going into this book that it was a Part I of a series! Now I have to wait until next year to read the next installment which I most certainly will be doing.

When I first started reading this book I had a really hard time grasping onto what was taking place. Wiggins writes the entire story in a “dream-like” descriptive state. You’ll understand why here in a moment. There is very little description about the surroundings, with most of the emphasis on thoughts, feelings and only on the immediate interactions.

Cole is a drone worker in a place called Refuge. Everyone in Refuge is conditioned not to have emotions, feelings or even to dream about things. They are told that these dream monsters, the Mara, will eat them if they dream. So, Cole, who is a security technician in Refuge, finds herself tasked to investigate a situation on Floor 16, which is entirely unheard of for someone in her position. As she investigates the floor she finds a body consumed by the Mara. Superior level investigators arrive on the scene looking for her and she escapes into a hallway. As she tries to outrun these men she finds the hidden secrets behind Refuge and the power she has that can save people from the Mara.

Most of the story is spent in suspended animation, a vivid dreamscape sequence of places like Freedom where they dress in vivacious costumes, drink gold flakes and party until they are completely spent. The way Wiggins writes about how the Mara infiltrate dreams and horrifyingly kill those that are dreaming had me in awe.

Wiggins is a truly unique writer that can transport a story into not only a fantasy world, but one that is real in its essence and darkly satisfying at the same time.

Throughout the story, Cole is constantly battling information. She learns something new, challenges the information and over time learns she is far stronger and intelligent than she ever cared to give herself credit for. Oh and did I mention her kick-ass ghost that haunts her? Cadence is her ghost, a subconscious voice that speaks to her, mostly annoying her, but also helping her disseminate information.

I can’t wait to read the next installment!

P.S. I highly recommend listening to some appropriate music while reading this book. It assists in creating a feel and ambience for these places you’ll be reading about. I found Apocolyptica and dark EDM music to provide the proper setting for me.

About the Author:

K.A. Wiggins writes YA Fantasy with an edge for ages 14 and up.

Expect more blood than kissing. #monstersandmagic

Her debut novel, BLIND THE EYES, launched in 2018. Join the newsletter at kawiggins.com to get an exclusive free 5 chapter preview ebook and audiobook.

Kaie has been creating urban legends about witches in the back wood and fairies in the snow melt since she was seven years old. She writes prickly mistfits challenging the borders of the mundane, inspired by current stars Brenna Yovanoff, Kendare Blake, and Laini Taylor, and fantasy legends J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Madeleine L’Engle.

Born in Vancouver, BC, she freelances as a business writer and marketing consultant in the Pacific Northwest.

Find her: Instagram

I was provided a review copy of this book by NetGalley via Xpresso Tours in exchange for an honest review.