Fell of the Gratitude wagon ...

The reasons why, aren't important but I thought I best jump back on or the entire month might  be a bust. Fairly unrealistic to think I can post daily with the unpredictability of my life anyway, so I suppose I will post when I can for November. And when the spirit moves me. Which is the most important thing anyway, when it comes to blogging. If you are not feeling it, then don't do it.

Today, as I flitted about my day, I paused and thought a bit about my health. And how thankful I am for it. For some that know me, that might sound strange because I do have some quirky and not so fun health issues. Not life threatening by any means but definitely, life effecting. A few being down right no fun at all.

One being Meniere's. That not so little, vertigo thing, that disrupts my life in some manner, almost daily. I know for a fact, a very sweet friend of mine, reads this blog almost every day. And her business is the business of ears. And 10 years ago, almost exactly, I called her and said that I was having these strange episodes. She suggested going to a specialist and at the end of the conversations she said that the one thing I didn't want was Meniere's. Oh well, so it is. That is what I have and nothing I can do about it. Nasty thing. But manageable on most days.

Then we throw in a mild case of Lupus and Sjogrens as a chaser, and my immune system revolts against me in unexpected moments. Like this past spring when Shingles and MRSA came calling. I go every two months for my gamma globulin shots and I pay attentions to my little flair's and again, not much more I can do about that.

I suppose next up is a few pesky cardiac issues. But right now, at my age, I just have my yearly check ups and that is good enough. Beta-blockers may be in my future but for now they are not, so that is a good thing.

Last but not least, my asthma. My three inhalers keep me in check and I add my rescue medication more often if need be. I  pay attention to the weather and environments I am going into and except for a few scary attacks that have come out of the blue, I really don't pay much attention to this latest blip on my health radar.

So, say you, I am thankful for my health? I sure am. All of these are relatively benign. A nuisance for sure but other then that, so not a big deal. And I stay active and work out despite it all. And honestly because of it all. My lungs are healthier and will remain as such, with my running. That is a known fact. Data in research on Meniere's also states that people who run also have added benefits and less attacks in some cases. Since one of my heart issues is counteractive with one of the Meniere's meds., I really cannot take the usual prescribed treatment regime. Which I am happier about anyway. I dislike taking medication. A lot.

The thing is, I need to be healthy to take care of this crew. Of Zoey most especially. She needs my body healthy and fit to lift her and carry her and transfer her and as she gets older, that will become more difficult. I want to keep up with the pace of this life. Which moves at warp speed. Wouldn't you agree? So to keep healthy, I keep moving through the little glitches life has thrown me. And part of the benefit of keeping active is not only for a healthy body, but a healthy mind as well. And my mind isn't necessary healthy either. I have my issues. Many infact. But good mental health however, goes hand in hand with physical health. At least in my case.

 For instance, last night, Joe was in rare form. Mark walks in at 9pm and Joe is just going off. Let's just say as the abridged version, I asked him 32 times, and I counted by the way, to go upstairs  and get ready for bed and when Mark walked in, there was Joe. standing on the staircase. So I say, nice to see you honey, hope your day was good and I'm outta here. Instead of a night run, I headed to the gym. Yep, a gym. Not my style. Never have done the gym thing. Enjoy outdoors so much more but I needed to do it. With "our winter" showing up, too cold to venture out at night and in the wee hours of the morning, before Mark leaves for work, I do not want to get out of my snugly bed to run and bike. A gym is a great choice in my life right now. Such a variety of things to do in the gym. Classes like body sculpting with weights,yoga and pilates. They have a ton of equipment, like stair climbers and this cool machine that I didn't even know about called a Helix machine. So I am adding this new gym to my repitoire of working out and I really think I am going to enjoy it.

I have seen so many people, far younger then I, babies actually, fight for their lives. And I have seen far too many of them lose that battle. I watch my daughter fight everyday to just be and I intend to appreciate my days with the body I have been given. Just as it is. I intend to breathe deeply, even when that is difficult, but I will breathe and cherish those breathes more completely and fully. I will embrace the aches and the pains and the the extra's that have been handed to me and I intend to push through and push past and just live. That is the best way I know how to express my gratitude for this life.